The Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) has been monitoring the availability of public information in Georgia since 2010. In a new report IDFI presents an assessment of the availability of public information in Georgia based on data from 2022. The report also includes an analysis of the trends in the release of public information in 2010-2022 and the rating of access to public information in public institutions.

Main Findings

- Out of 7,582 requests sent to 374 public institutions in 2022, IDFI received answers to only 4,385 (58%);
- Out of 7,582 requests sent to public institutions in 2022, IDFI received information within the prescribed 10-day period in 2,640 cases (35%);
- In 2022, the non-response rate for each point in IDFI"s standard requests amounts to at least 41%. Among them, most agencies (59%) ignored or refused to answer the points related to the disclosure of internal audit reports;
- The highest rate of complete responses (69% complete) was observed in the group of public institutions that includes: the government and ministries of Adjara A/R, as well as the government of Abkhazia A/R and the administration of South Ossetia.
- In 2022, only 9 public institutions fully provided public information within the 10-day timeframe (including the Bureau of Public Security, the Office of the Public Defender, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports of Adjara);
- In 2022, the rate of access to information of 130 public institutions is less than 50%;
- Among the central public institutions, the highest rates of access to public information were observed for the Administration of the President of Georgia (95.36%) and the apparatus of the Parliament of Georgia - (85.39%); The indicator of the Administration of the Government of Georgia was only 18.31%;
- In 2022, the response rates of public institutions decreased by 24% compared to 2021 year and amounted to 58%. This indicator is the lowest result since 2010;
- In 2022, IDFI prepared 56 administrative complaints and 16 administrative lawsuits. Despite the legal complexity of the dispute, the court has extended the term of consideration of the case to 5 months for all the cases received in the proceedings;