Public Service Hall Chair, UNDP Resident Representative sign deal on improving services

Citizens living in Georgia’s rural areas, persons with disabilities and representatives of ethnic minorities will benefit from improved access to state services following a deal signed between the Public Service Hall and the United Nations Development Programme on Wednesday.

Lasha Lobjanidze, the Chair of the PSH and Douglas Webb, the Resident Representative of the UNDP in Georgia, signed the agreement that will ensure training for more than 200 employees of the former body in providing services to individuals with disabilities with “improved communication skills”, with the targeted regions including the country's eastern Kakheti region, western regions of Imereti and Guria, and north-western regions of Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti.

The Service Hall said the agreement would be implemented with the support of the European Union-funded European Neighbourhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development.

It said it would be able to identify needs in densely populated minority communities and other areas and “greatly enhance” service delivery by integrating business analytics systems.

It added the creation and delivery of informational materials in languages of ethnic minorities in their areas would “significantly raise” their awareness of state services.