Honourable Prime Minister, Dear Minister Bregadze, dear Ministers, excellences, ladies and gentlemen,

Today’s event presents an excellent opportunity for us to shine a light on Georgia's progress and accomplishments in the justice sector.  I am pleased to see colleagues from EU member states, enlargement countries, and other European nations joining us to learn from each other.

Since June of last year, Georgia has proudly taken its place as an EU enlargement country and over the years to come will need to continue its efforts to align its framework with the EU acquis. Georgia’s European perspective and hopefully candidate status will enhance our cooperation including in the rule of law, a key area of alignment in any enlargement country.

The European Union Delegation to Georgia has been closely following the developments in Georgia's Criminal Justice sector for almost two decades. Our journey began in 2004 with the EU JUST Themis mission. Over the years, the European Union allocated approximately 60 million euros as direct budget support and more than 25 million euros in complementary technical assistance and grants to civil society. Nearly half of this support was dedicated to enhancing crime prevention, probation, and penitentiary systems in Georgia.

Throughout this time, Georgia has demonstrated remarkable progress developing the juvenile justice system, including the highly successful diversion and mediation project; advancing reform of the National Probation service of Georgia, facilitating the integration of social services and social work into both probation and penitentiary systems. These are key elements of rehabilitation and resocialization practices in crime prevention and sentence implementation.

I extend my heartfelt gratitude to all state institutions involved in creating, developing, and sustaining the progress achieved so far. It is the collective dedication of every social worker, probation officer, and penitentiary system practitioner.

As we celebrate our achievements, it is crucial that we continue to invest in this critical endeavour and address the challenges that the system still faces.

Despite all efforts to reduce incarceration rates in Georgia and to establish a well-functioning system for non-custodial measures and sanctions, Georgia unfortunately remains among the top five in Europe with the highest prison population rates. We firmly believe that Georgia possesses the potential to overcome these challenges gradually and further develop the probation and penitentiary system to ensure full compliance with relevant European standards. The European Union remains committed to the ongoing reform of the entire justice system in Georgia. Together, we can build a more equitable and harmonious society, promote reconciliation, and construct more compassionate and resilient communities.

I wish you all fruitful and enlightening discussions throughout these three days.