Disability-Sensitive Public Service Delivery Becomes a New Standard in Georgia

The eight-month work undertaken by the Georgian Public Service Hall to provide inclusive services to people with disabilities was summarised at a public event on 16 January.

The Minister of Justice of Georgia, Thea Tsulukiani, presented the results of the project “Enhanced Services for All,” implemented with assistance from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the Government of Sweden, and introduced a manual ‘Serving People with Disabilities in the Public Service Hall’, which establishes a new public service standard in Georgia.

The event was attended by H.E. Ulrik Tideström, Ambassador of Sweden to Georgia and Armenia, and Munkhtuya Altangerel, UNDP Acting Head in Georgia, as well as by representatives of the Georgian Government, diplomatic missions, non-governmental organizations and people with disabilities engaged in the implementation of the project.

The manual on disability-sensitive public service delivery has been developed by the Georgian Public Service Hall based on the best international practices and an assessment of needs in Georgia. The practical guidelines included in the manual have been integrated into the Public Service Quality Standard, a guiding document which regulates public service delivery in Georgia and is mandatory for all members of the Public Service Hall staff. The new quality standard has been introduced to all Public Service Hall branches across Georgia.

From June to December 2018, the Public Service Hall retrained all 750 of its front desk operators and has included a training module on disability-sensitive service delivery to the new staff induction programme.

Furthermore, to improve public services for people with hearing impairments, 400 new signs covering all key areas of public services have been created and introduced to the Georgian sign language and twenty operators of the Tbilisi Public Service Hall have been trained in sign language. Over 200 customers with hearing impairments have received public services in sign language since November 2018.

Following this success, the Georgian Public Service Hall is considering the next steps needed for making public service delivery more efficient, ensuring an inclusive environment and equal opportunities for all.