2019-11-29

Head of the Administration of the Georgian Government Natia Mezvrishvili attended today's presentation of the UNDP mid-term survey results, which studied public trust in state services.
The presentation was attended by UNDP Resident Representative in Georgia Louisa Vinton, British Ambassador to Georgia Justin McKenzie Smith, and representatives of various organizations.
The Head of the Government's Administration, in her speech, thanked the UK and UNDP for conducting this important survey.

According to Natia Mezvrishvili, the Administration of the Government of Georgia supports public governance reform and spares no effort to take more active steps in this direction.
"We are progressing toward public governance reform, though there remain certain issues that require work. And we can state with all assuredness that, admittedly, these steps have not been as fast-paced last year, which is why we will spare no effort to step up our work in this direction next year. I avail myself of this opportunity to state that the Administration of the Georgian Government supports public administration reform and, in cooperation with you, we will try to take even more active steps. This survey is important to us in that it helps us see our progress in this direction, on one hand, and exposes gaps and challenges we must overcome in the process of working on this reform, on the other. As you know, this reform, 5 years into inception, has brought about quite tangible results with your assistance. I would like to touch on a few direction. In the process of work, a policy planning system has been developed, and evidence-based policy-making monitoring and evaluation mechanisms have been put in place. Of course, much remains to be done in this direction, and we will continue our active work."

Natia Mezvrishvili also emphasized that, as Georgia has been elected a member of the OGP Steering Committee, the country will further step up its work in this direction.
"There are two important laws of which you, of all people, are aware: The Law on Public Service and the Law on Public Service Remuneration. I will not elaborate on the details, and only say that these are quite progressive steps forward. As you know, in 2019, Georgia was elected a member of the OGP Steering Committee, and we will further step up our work in this direction. The development of a unified state services delivery policy has been launched, which is very important for adopting unified standards, and we hope to achieve progress in this direction as well, not to mention the adoption of the monitoring system for property declaration, which has been over the years an effective mechanism in the fight against corruption. The survey clearly shows that this reform, in general, is supported by 92% of public servants, though there remains much to do in terms of awareness, and the Administration of the Government, together with UNDP, will continue working actively on the development of the communications strategy for public governance reform.
Natia Mezvrishvili singled out three key priorities, on which emphasis will be placed in the short run.

"I would single out three key priorities that we will emphasize in the short-term. We are working on a number of issues, including legislation, which I will not discuss in detail now, though, unfortunately, it must be expedited, and last year we it was not as rapid as it should have been. Thus, the first priority is the successful completion of the 2019-2020 plan.
The second active direction is the new strategy and action plan, with its goals focusing on concrete results. And the third priority that requires empowerment and active work involves the Interagency Council for Public Service Reform, with a view to ensuring a high level of representation in decision-making. You can rest assured that the Administration of the Government, in cooperation with you, will continue working actively on each of said directions. Once again, we are grateful to the UK and UNDP for their active support throughout these years," Natia Mezvrishvili said.