The provisions of the Unified Administrative Code of Georgia aimed at fostering modern public service, based on principles of transparency and accountability to the public. Its most important provisions addressed Freedom of Information (FOI), helping to break down the barriers between public service and the citizenry characteristic for the Soviet system of governance. The Code also aimed at establishing a cooperative pattern of interaction, with public officials providing relevant services in a predictable, efficient, and timely manner.
Since 2001, UNAG had been cooperating with the IRIS Centre at the University of Maryland to implement the provisions of the Administrative Code of Georgia related to FOI. The project aimed at increasing the level of compliance of public institutions with the FOI provisions by establishing transparent, viable procedures and training their staff.
UNAG activities under the project covered about 250 public institutions in nine provinces, 18 cities, and 7 municipalities in Georgia. The early stages of the project focused on municipal and local authorities and in 2004 the central authorities were more actively targeted.
Activities expanded significantly in 2005. The framework developed by the project team to improve implementation of FOI provisions was extended to other areas of the Administrative Code, including Administrative Contract, Administrative Proceeding, Enforcement of an Administrative Act, and Preparation of an Administrative Act.

Activities

In 2005, through its Improved Public Administration project, UNAG strived to:
• Identify the gaps in FOI-related legislation and its implementation, with special emphasis on the Adjara Autonomous Republic and the city of Tbilisi;
• Suggest legislative and procedural solutions to existing problems; 
• Assist public institutions to implement FOI provisions through regular consultations and experience sharing with CSOs;
• Maintain a database of experts and educational materials that could support improved administration.
The UNAG team engaged experts and public servants for generalizing best practices and drafting relevant subsidiary legislation. UNAG had been organizing seminars and working meetings regularly giving public officers opportunity to share experiences and find solutions to the implementation problems.
The project also focused on mandatory reporting of public institutions on implementation of the FOI provisions, commonly referred to as “The December 10 Process” according to the deadline for submission of reports.

Achievements

• Officers responsible for FOI provisions have been appointed in most public institutions;
• Responsible officers became better aware of their duties and rights; 
• Public servants no longer request statements of purpose from citizens requesting public information;
• Information which had been classified on insufficient grounds was declassified; 
• Collegiate public institutions are more likely to hold sessions open to the public and inform the public of these sessions;
• More public institutions openly post the FOI regulations, contact information of the responsible officer, and information about the procedures for reviewing applications.
• Procedures and deadlines for the release of public information had been established.