UNDP Governance Reform Fund phase IV

Some results delivered in the year 2022 by the Governance Reform Fund (GRF) are as follows: - GRF supported participatory review process and analysis of the legal and practical framework for civil service, which resulted in a professional development concept supporting the creation of a more efficient and transparent civil service. - Through supporting the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) - a) 67 male and 100 female civil servants were trained from 43 municipalities that resulted in increased professional development capacities, raised professionalism across the civil service, led to the application of unified standards of management, increased structural flexibility; b) 226 professional civil servants from 54 municipalities has improved the fulfilment of their responsibilities at the local level; c) 900 civil servants in eight civil servants forums have strengthened the cohesion of civil servants through engaging them in practical knowledge-sharing platform; - GRF supported evidence-based training for 815 healthcare personnel from 13 municipalities that improved infection prevention knowledge, increased self-confidence to change perceptions of vaccine risks and benefits, and increased awareness of COVID-19 risks and vaccine communication barriers. - GRF supported cascade trainings on the rights of persons with disabilities (PwDs) for 1,531 patrol police officers that enhanced their communication skills, resulting in more inclusive and high-quality police services for PwDs. - GRF supported GeoStat in establishment of a modern and cost-effective data collection system that improved the quality and accessibility of official statistics and their application in the decision-making process. - GRF supported comprehensive service assessment, and the service design guideline implementation that will improve service quality and efficiency at the Rural Development Agency, while the feasibility assessments to delegate rural public services to local municipalities will lead to more effective rural service delivery and better accountability. In environment and climate change area: - GRF supported the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Developments assessment of industry-related measures and policies for decarbonization, energy efficiency, and competitiveness, and the development of indicators and ToR for policy monitoring and implementation of the National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) are all improving data and technical capacity to make energy policy more sustainable. - With GRF support Batumi Municipality's updated waste management plan for 2023-2027 is gradually introducing modern approaches, resulting in improved waste management practices. - GRF supported implementing the Environmental Protection and National Resources Committee's recommended changes to the Waste Management Code, effective approaches to regulate the construction, operation, maintenance, closure, and aftercare of inert waste have been integrated, resulting in enhanced and sustainable management of inert waste. Some selected results from the 2023 in the area of democratic and environmental governance are as follows: - GRF supported the Rural Development Agency (RDA) in building capacity of to deliver human-centered services to the rural population. Namely, the Digital Service Standard has been developed, that will lead to the development of digital services in RDA. The Standard will gradually contribute to remedying the chaotic approaches that have long persisted in the public sector with respect to digital services. - Two comprehensive policy documents, including GeoStat strategy, are now available to statistical users, outlining new development trends and actions for the next four years, underscoring the indispensable role of robust data collection practices in shaping informed policy formulation and decision-making. In addition five thematic portals have been created with GRF support, namely the Consumer Price Index (CPI) Calculator, Personal Inflation Calculator, Tax Calculator, International Comparison Portal, and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Portal. The portals already visited by 16300 visitors. - The Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) SME Test toolkit was created to help civil servants evaluate how regulations affect small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs). This toolkit gives government officials the necessary skills and helps create a business-friendly environment. It contributes to the country's economic growth by ensuring regulations support SME growth and sustainability. - Up to 400 professional civil servants from 54 municipalities in eight regions of Georgia have improved their knowledge of management, leadership, and civil service laws and practices. They have also learned about their role in public administration, helping them develop professionally and apply new solutions in their work. - In terms of environmental governance, the GRF project has supported strengthening of the air quality monitoring and forecasting capacities of 34 National Environmental Agency staff members, thus equipping Georgia with the tools to better track and address air quality issues, ensuring a healthier environment for its citizens. - The Preschool Environmental Education Program has successfully trained over 600 practitioners and teachers, raising awareness on greater environmental consciousness throughout the population. - Educating 35 civil servants from Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture and its agencies about the newly established environmental liability system has ensured that environmental regulations are enforced, thereby promoting sustainable environmental practices. - Roadmaps on energy efficiency, renewable energy, energy security, and energy poverty help Ministry of Economic and Sustainable Development staff understand the EU's "Clean energy for all Europeans" package, as well as the barriers and opportunities related to its transposition and implementation.

The overall objective of the contribution is defined as "to accelerate structural transformation for sustainable development by enhancing citizen-centric governance systems for efficiently serving their constituencies." For achieving the overall objective lower level objectives are defined as follows: - Institutional and human capacity of targeted public agencies strengthened to better implement reforms for advancing public administration systems. - The enabling environment created through advancing policy formulation and regulatory framework to address sectoral challenges in the field of democratic and environmental governance. The implementation partner has developed indicators for measuring the progress towards the objectives and means of verification. The key feature of the GRF for acheiving results lies in its demand-driven, quick response format, which allows the Government of Gerogia and UNDP GRF to address priority issues that emerge in the beneficiary institutions. It serves as a complementary tool to longer-term project-based work, which operates in a less flexible manner. The GRF uses the two mechanisms Capacity Development Fund (CDF) and On-Demeant Consultancy Services (DCS) as the pathways to achieve the goals set for the initiative.