Georgia, after decades of enforced isolationism, is integrating both into the international community and the global market. Global processes and trends are playing more and more significant role in developments in the country and the region, which need to define their new role based on the realities of its comparative advantages and its geopolitical environment. The process of strategic planning of the country’s future should take into consideration such global and regional processes and trends as technological innovations, EU and NATO expansion, insurgence of international terrorism, dynamics of international markets and investment flows, as well as the risks of new pandemics, global environmental threats and the exhausting of natural resources. These global trends that have full potential to shape the world in the twenty-first century will certainly to a great extent shape the future of Georgia and the Caucasus. Nevertheless, it is not at all clear either what measures or models for medium and long term development are proposed by governments, how they could affect people, and whether and to what degree they are consistent with the objectives of open society and sustainable development. At the same time problems like ethno-territorial conflicts, center-periphery and minority-majority relations, corruption, catastrophic decline in public services, human rights and media freedom abuses, deteriorating natural and urban environment, widespread poverty, absence of elementary labour protection mechanisms, and many others, cry for clear-cut strategies, rational policies and conceptual thinking.

Thus, the ambition behind launching the Public Policy Institute was to create a think tank that could bring together available resources, international experience and technologies, fully equipped to deal with the tasks of studying, analysis, monitoring and initiating public debate of the most solvent social and political issues, and developing respective policy papers and initiatives, promoting the ideas of good governance and democratic state-building. Public Policy Institute focuses its research and discussion on the key issues of social policies, development of respective policies, legal initiatives and recommendations. In perspective, the Institute will cover not only Georgian issues, but create a comparative framework for the whole area of the Southern Caucasus, where the need for such activities obviously exists. At the initial stage of its institutional growth, the work will concentrate along some of the following priority directions:

• Regional conflicts and the minorities in state building; Population migration, repatriation and adaptation of forced migrants, IDPs and refugees;
• Prospects of involvement in European integration process and related policy changes; Monitoring and implementing European standards in human and minority rights, freedom of information and judiciary, social services and environment protection;
• Poverty and vulnerability, efficacy of anti-poverty and welfare programs and of social services; Social discrimination/equity and availability of adequate healthcare and education opportunities for all;
• Regional co-operation and models of security arrangements; Regional integration, development and security related attitudes, approaches and concepts among the population and the decision-makers;
• Future of business-labour relations and social contract; Trade-unions and labour protection institutions and mechanisms; Human resources, unemployment and development;
• Monitoring efficacy and adequacy of international assistance programs and approaches, and understanding the roots of frequent failures and misconduct; Designing tools for optimisation and effective monitoring of international assistance;
• Good governance; Corruption and anti-corruption programmes; Effectiveness of checks and balances mechanisms; Harmonisation of centre-periphery relations; Local governments, decentralisation and federalisation.

PPI, PO Box #158 (4), Tbilisi 380008

Tel: +995-99-580798 /-915741