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Digital Technologies for Open Parliament in Georgia

Citizens of Georgia can now access public information, keep track of the legislative work and send electronic requests to their Parliament via the new Public Information Module and Mobile Application, developed with the assistance of the European Union and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in cooperation with the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI).

Presentation of Georgia’s Open Data Lab – www.DataLab.ge

Gender Equality – Key to Sustainable Development

Georgian Government, international agencies, civil society and the private sector join hands to promote gender equality as one of the key aspects of sustainable development agenda. Policy dialogue on 21 February 2018 focused on the Sustainable Development Goal on Gender Equality – SDG5, aiming to set the ways of achieving meaningful progress in political and economic empowerment of women in Georgia by 2030. 

Georgia Moves Forward to Legislative Openness

Georgian Parliament fully implemented 13 and partially 11 out of 24 commitments described in the Open Parliament Action Plan 2017, and will continue this successful work in 2018. Among other achievements, the Parliament has initiated the Code of Ethics of MPs and provided opportunities for citizens to submit e-petitions and e-legislative initiatives.

Global Agenda for Sustainable Development and Georgian Path from 2015

The UN General Assembly adopted 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with its Resolution A/RES/70/1 on September 2015. 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 associated targets are enshrined in the Resolution and balance three dimensions of sustainable development– economic, social and environmental. 2030 Agenda is the sole global agenda that unites every country to achieve sustainable development with the core principle of “leaving no one behind”.

An Electronic Petition Platform – ICHANGE.GOV.GE – was Launched in Georgia

On December 22, 2017 the Georgian government launched an e-petition platform (ichange.gov.ge). Through the platform, any Georgian citizen is able to create an electronic petition and gather signatures; petitions with a sufficient number of signatures will be sent to the government for consideration. Most importantly, the Georgian government will be obligated to provide responses to citizen petitions and make them publicly available online.

IDFI Weighs in on the Constitutional Claim of Giorgi Mamaladze and His Lawyers

Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) submitted an amicus curiae (friend of the court) observation on the constitutional claim "Citizens of Georgia -Giorgi Mamaladze, Giorgi Pantsulaia and Maia Zoidze vs. Georgian Parliament" prepared by the Constitutional Law Clinic of Free University of Tbilisi.

Transparency and Public Participation in Lawmaking Discussed by MPs and Experts in Tbilisi

Practical ways of ensuring a transparent and participatory legislative process were the focus of a workshop held by the Legal Issues Committee of the Parliament of Georgia in cooperation with the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), European Union (EU), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI), on 18 and 19 December 2017 in Tbilisi. 

International Anti-Corruption Day: Existing Challenges and Activities Implemented by IDFI

International Anti-Corruption Day: Existing Challenges and Activities Implemented by IDFI

Presentation of the Local Self-Government Index

On December 5, 2017, at the Hotel Holiday Inn, a presentation was held of the Local Self-Government Index and the first report of the national evaluation of the transparency and accountability of municipalities in Georgia. The event was opened by the Executive Director of Open Society Georgia Foundation Keti Khutsishvili, Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia Irakli Kobakhidze and Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze.