The Public Defender of Georgia has been elected to the Board of Directors of the International Ombudsman Institute (IOI) from Europe. The elections ended on November 18 and resulted in the formation of the Board of Directors from the region of Europe. Voting had been ongoing online for several weeks and about 60 European ombuds institutions took part in it.

According to the IOI rules, the Board of Directors of the European region is comprised of 7 members, elected for a four-year term, and their function is to devise an action strategy, objectives and actions. The Public Defender of Georgia will perform the duties of a member of the Board of Directors together with Ombudsmen of Greece, Sweden (Parliamentary Ombudsman), Great Britain (Parliamentary and Health Ombudsman), Ireland, Portugal and Belgium (OmbudsmanofWalloniaand of theWallonia-BrusselsFederation).

It should be noted that the International Ombudsman Institute was established in 1978 and it is the only global organization that brings together nearly 200 independent ombuds institutions from more than 100 countries. The IOI is divided into 6 regions, namely: Africa, Asia, Australia and Oceania, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, North America. The goal of the IOI is to help ombuds institutions cooperate at the local, regional and national level. Usually, these organizations deal with citizens' complaints about public administration of their countries and protect citizens from violations of their rights. The IOI focuses on good governance and capacity-building of ombuds institutions. In addition, by organizing various conferences, trainings and seminars, the IOI supports its members in establishing effective public governance and strengthening the principles of a democratic state.

The membership of the IOI Board of Directors will contribute significantly to the strengthening of Georgian Public Defender's capacities and representation at the international level and deepening of international cooperation, which, in turn, will promote establishment of best practices at the national level in terms of effective protection of human rights.