Public Policy Discourse and Dialogue Platform 2021

The project is designed to create a platform to stimulate constructive and systematic policy debate among different political and social groups of Georgian society. Among other goals, the project aims to encourage young researchers in Georgia to develop valuable policy research papers on the following two important policy issues:

• Artificial Intelligence (AI) – the research will analyze whether or not Georgia can follow the Estonian model and become a regional technological hub in this direction. The research will also analyze what the prospects are of integrating AI education into Georgia’s national education system. The policy paper will identify: what kind of challenges Georgia could face in this regard and how these challenges can be addressed; what the short- and medium-term actions should be; and what the pros and cons are of the suggested action plans; and
• Cybersecurity – the research will analyze international practices in the building of national cybersecurity systems, gleaning useful experience for Georgia’s efforts with respect to new legislation adopted by relevant parliaments on cybersecurity. The research will include issues related to: institutional architecture; allocation of functions; regulatory framework; organization of public-private cooperation; mechanisms of balance between human rights and security (including problems of civilian oversight of security services). The research will study the level of readiness in the Georgian private sector for implementing enhanced cybersecurity requirements. It will also assess the current situation regarding awareness of private legal entities (considered as potential subjects of critical information systems according to the draft legislation) about emerging cybersecurity problems, and will give a general overview of their technical capabilities and the amount of work they need to do to upgrade their systems to align with the new regulatory framework. The research will also investigate the current situation regarding the evolution of Darknet in Georgia, its accessibility, its impact on cybercrime, public awareness of it, as well as government policy regarding the threats emerging from the expansion of Darknet.