Beka Mikautadze

Parliament of Georgia

Head of the Cabinet Of The Parliament Chair

Paris -2013

Brief Outline of Current Reforms and Changes in Georgia

2012 Parliamentary Elections;

2013 Presidential Elections;

Changes of the Constitution (Adequate distribution of power amongst branches);

First meeting of the newly elected Parliament Chair with NGO sector.

Civil Society Organizations in Georgia More than 1000 registered NGOs;

10 to 20 active Organizations (GYLA, TI, ISFED etc.);

All Spheres, form Governance to Animal Rights, are covered;

Main source of NGO funding is foreign AID.

NGO and Government Relations

With USAID assistance NGO liaison bureau was created ;

Parliament of Georgia signed an MOU with Civil Organizations;

All activities of the Parliament are open to the interested persons/organizations;

All active committees have allocated focal person to coordinate with the NGO sector

NGO and Government Relations

NGO representatives are involved in all types of Reforms initiated by the Government;

Government is more transparent in its activities ;

Governmental web-pages give much more information today.

Civil Service Reform

The Government of Georgia considers civil service reform as an important process in its political agenda.

In 2013, the Chancellery of the Government of Georgia stalled work on the development of a new civil service.

The new government elaborated civil service reform project: “The Development of a Civil Service Reform Concept and Associated Operational Plan”.

Civil Service Reform Counsel

Within the project, the Government has created the Civil Service Reform Council, which includes deputy ministers, The Parliament, a governmental working group and the Civil Service Advisory Group (CSAG);

The Counsel works to develop a new civil service reform strategy, associated action plan and legislative framework, to be completed by the end of February 2014.

Civil Service Advisory Group (CSAG),

The CSAG is comprised of active members of civil society, academia, and think tanks/research organizations;

The CSAG is one of the main vehicles for the delivery of the newly formulated civil service concept for Georgia

For this purpose, the CSAG has already worked in the following matters:

Civil Service Advisory Group (CSAG),

Conducted analysis of past and current written concepts of civil service reform in Georgia;

Developed and issued a “white paper” on civil service that documents past and current concepts for reform and presents a balanced approach to key issues of civil service reform in Georgia;

Designed, organized and implemented a series of focus group meetings.

Civil Service Advisory Group (CSAG),

In the near future, the CSAG will draft the final Concept of Civil Service Reform in Georgia and Civil Service Concept Strategy that will be submitted to the Government of Georgia for approval by the end of February 2014