“The Georgian regulatory framework  is well aligned with the EU regulatory framework and practices. Georgia is for us the best-case scenario, without any exageration . The national regulatory authority is embedded in the national constitution. The rights and obligations are guided by the constitution. There are freedoms of decision-making and sufficiency of resources.” This is the assessment regarding the Communications Commission delivered by the EU4Digital Telecom Rules stream leader Andrejs Dombrovskis. Mr. Dombrovski’s remarks were made during the meeting of the Independent Regulators and Broadband Expert Working Group (IRB EWG) of the Eastern Partnership Electronic Communications Regulators Network (EaPeReg). 

Important issues discussed during the meeting included the role of an independent regulator in the digital age, the importance of broadband infrastructure, and stimulating competition and investment in Eastern Partnership countries. 

Close cooperation between the EU4Digital programme and IRB EWG in 2019-2020 resulted in the development and adoption of the methodology for the assessment of independence of national regulatory authorities in the field of electronic communications. Assessment of the electronic communications frameworks and regulatory bodies in all six Eastern Partnership countries included the analysis of issues such as the structure and management of regulatory authorities, the rules for appointing members of regulatory bodies, budgeting, public consultation, transparency, the powers and responsibilities of regulatory authorities, market analysis, management of exhaustible resources, consumer rights protection and universal services. Based on the aforementioned parameters, Georgia leads the other Eastern Partnership countries with regards to the independence of its regulatory authority. Furthermore, the Georgian regulatory system is in line with the EU legislation. 

The working meeting was attended by high-level representatives from the European Commission, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC), World Bank, regulatory authorities from the EU and Eastern Partnership countries, and state authorities responsible for policy development in the field of electronic communications.

The parties agreed to elaborate a common methodology for measuring broadband connectivity in Eastern Partnership countries, which will allow measuring key parameters such as accessibility, quality and penetration. 

The meeting included a presentation by the World Bank’s lead ICT specialist and programme leader in Europe and Central Asia, Juan Navas-Sabater, who talked about successful practices with regards to development of broadband infrastructure, citing Georgia as an example. According to him, the Log-in Georgia project, which aims to increase high speed internet access across the country, is an ideal example and model for cooperation in the field of broadband development.