On April 24 Open Society Georgia Foundation hosted the conference on personal data protection and anti-discrimination on the way to visa liberalization.
According to it’s National Strategy on National Policy for International Development Cooperation, Romania supports developing countries in the geographic areas identified as priorities in the foreign relations of the Romanian government, including the states of Eastern Europe, the Western Balkans and the South Caucasus. Romania’s priority partner countries are Moldova, Georgia and Serbia.
The project „Supporting the visa liberalization process in Georgia by providing assistance in the field of personal data protection and anti-discrimination” is supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through it’s Official Development Assistance policy. The project meets the development objectives of Georgia regarding administrative and legislative reform in order to align with European standards, through assistance in the fields of anti-discrimination and protection of personal data, as important components of the Visa Liberalization Action Plan in the EU-Georgia Dialogue.
Romania, through its dedicated institutions, has a significant and relevant experience in the two areas, experience that was already shared with other partner countries and that led to the development of a successful model of inter-institutional cooperation. Taking into account the needs identified in the partner country and the already existing cooperation opportunities, the project replicates this model in the framework of a Romania-Georgia cooperation project in two fields. Thus, the project aims to: (1) Strengthen the capacity of the Personal Data Protection Inspector’s Office in Georgia in order to meet EU criteria on data protection and (2) Strengthen the capacity of the Ombudsman’s office in Georgia in order to meet EU criteria on citizens’ rights and protection of minorities.
Personal data protection in Georgia and the dialogue on Visa Liberalization with the EU
