Regional CSOs Fighting Corruption

First successful attempts
 
A group of Georgian regional civil society organizations (CSOs) has presented first results within the framework of project “Supporting anticorruption initiatives in six regions of Georgia.” Center for Strategic Research and Development of Georgia (CSRDG) implements the project with its regional partners since September 2002 with support from Eurasia Foundation.  CSOs say the first results give hopes for more efficient watchdog work.

In a total six regional activities are implemented in Poti, Ozurgeti, Zugdidi, Gori, Akhaltsikhe and Kutaisi, accenting the budgetary oversight mechanisms in local government.

In Poti the local organization monitored the local budget items of “management expenses,” “municipality reserve funds” and “additional expenses.” Some cases of mismanagement were revealed, such as purchase of an expensive vehicle for the head of the local council. This case was publicized in a local media.

In Ozurgeti local group also worked to increase accountability of the local government. CSO worked with the local government to cut down the inflated transportation costs by 21 thousand Laris (approximately USD 10 thousand).

Six local CSOs in Zugdidi approached the problem from another angle. They tried to transparency of the social security projects. The group aims to create precise list of persons receiving social aid, verifying the official records by door-to-door visits.  Legal consultation for beneficiaries is also available via hotlines and individual meetings.

In Gori seven local CSOs want to mobilize the community to monitor and report the corruption and mismanagement cases in local government.
 
Within the framework of the project in Akhaltsikhe the Union of Democrat Meskhs has created an anti-corruption bureau, providing free legal consultations to the population. At the same the local budget expenses are monitored.

Amiran Meskheli, head of the implementing CSO says the bureau maintains the “mobile groups” to report to the money extortion by the local government officials.  CSO also conducts monitoring of privatization process in the region. They regularly publish a list of privatized facilities.

In Kutaisi five local CSOs have created the monitoring groups of teachers and parents at the secondary schools tasked with participation in forming the municipal education budget and monitoring the education facilities. Financial and administrative activity of the 39 educational bodies was conducted and the cases of mismanagement and insider trading were discovered.

“These are only first attempts of fighting corruption,” says Eka Urushadze of CSRDG,  “we plan to promote and support more anti-corruption campaigns in the regions and in Tbilisi.”