A round table on local democracy and equal participation was held in Tbilisi, Georgia, on 24 September 2019, as part of the conference on “The role of the Council of Europe Congress in the promotion of local democracy in Georgia”.
“By involving citizens more closely in democratic governance on a daily basis, we can revitalise their engagement in their communities and thus reawaken democracy”, stated Congress Vice-President Xavier Cadoret.
This round table also brought together Bryony Rudkin (United Kingdom, SOC), thematic spokesperson of the Congress on the European Local Democracy Week (ELDW), and Lela Akiashvili, Representative of the UNDP Gender Equality Programme (United Nations Development Programme), providing an opportunity to discuss the various Congress' instruments for ensuring citizen participation at the local level, such as the ELDW.
“At the Congress, we are firmly convinced that strengthening citizen participation and implementing open, transparent and responsible government at the local level will help to resolve the current crisis of confidence”, stressed the Congress spokesperson while presenting the theme of the 2019-2020 editions of the ELDW, “Local democracy: building trust”.
In the framework of this exchange, four municipalities (Kutaisi, Lagodekhi, Ozurgeti and Rustavi) signed the European Charter for Equality of Women and Men in Local Life of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions.
The conference was organised as part of the 20th anniversary of Georgia's accession to the Council of Europe, which coincides with its chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers, beginning November 2019. The event also coincided with the 70th anniversary of the Council of Europe and the 25th anniversary of the Congress.
Webpage of the event: Conference in Tbilisi, Georgia - 24 September 2019
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