On July 20, 2021, the Public Defender of Georgia organized an online conference on the role of ombudsmen/national human rights institutions in protecting the rights of older people. The meeting was led by Public Defender of Georgia Nino Lomjaria and First Deputy Public Defender of Georgia Tamar Gvaramadze.

The aim of the conference was to raise awareness of the rights of older people in the region, to discuss the existing challenges and the role of national human rights institutions, and to share practices of the protection of the rights of older people. The speakers discussed:

• National, regional and international human rights mechanisms relating to the rights of older people
• The role of national human rights institutions in promoting and protecting the rights of older people
• The importance of sharing practices to ensure the protection of the rights of older people in the region.

The conference was attended by representatives of regional ombudsmen, independent UN experts, human rights defenders and representatives of the Council of Europe and other stakeholders.

Claudia Mahler, an independent expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons, presented the UN's vision on changing the inconsistent system of the rights of older people. Tatiana Puiu, a member of the European Committee of Social Rights, spoke about the views of the Council of Europe and the European Social Charter on the protection of the rights of older people, and Karen Gomez-Dumpit, Commissioner of the Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines, spoke about the NHRI prospects.

The conference participants discussed the practices of Georgia, Azerbaijan, Ukraine and Armenia relating to the rights situation of older people.