Prof. Dr. Dr. Lela Janashvili, represented the Personal Data Protection Service at the annual Conference of the (GPA)

2022-10-31 18:51:51
Head of the Personal Data Protection Service of Georgia, Prof. Dr. Dr. Lela Janashvili, represented the Personal Data Protection Service at the annual Conference of the "Global Privacy Assembly" (GPA) in Istanbul, Turkey.

Since 1979, "Global Assembly for Privacy" (GPA) is a global forum that brings together more than 130 data protection authorities. The assembly aims to share best practices in the field of privacy and personal data protection.

This year, the Conference was held in a hybrid format in the Haliç Congress Center in İstanbul. The main theme of the Conference was determined as: "A Matter of Balance: Privacy in the Era of Rapid Technological Advancements”, aiming to highlight the importance of achieving a balance between privacy and technologies based on data processing. This year, the Conference was attended by the Head of the Personal Data Protection Service, Prof. Dr. Dr. Lela Janashvili, and the Head of the International Relations, Analytics and Strategic Development Department, Ana Tokhadze.  

The conference consisted of Open and Closed Sessions. In the framework of the Open Session, various topics such as AI, big data, blockchain, metaverse, and cross-border data transfer were discussed, while the agenda of the Closed Session included the accreditation of new countries applying to be members and the presentation of reports by Working Groups operating under GPA, discussions on administrative issues related to the management of GPA, and adoption of Resolutions. In a Closed Session, the GPA members were introduced to the "Resolution to Amend the Road Map and the Timeline to Achieve a Funded Secretariat", which was sponsored by the Personal Data Protection Service of Georgia, the Personal Data Protection Supervisory Authorities of Mexico, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and co-sponsored by Personal Data Protection Supervisory Authorities of Bermuda, Morocco, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, and Uruguay. The resolution was prepared by the GPA Secretariat Selection Committee, of which the Personal Data Protection Service of Georgia has been a member since the May of this year.

In the scope of a Closed Session, the Head of the Personal Data Protection Service, Prof. Dr. Dr. Lela Janashvili met with the Heads of the Mexican Data Protection Authority, National Institute for Transparency, Access to Information and Personal Data Protection (INAI) – Commissioner Blanca Lilia Ibarra, Commissioner Francisco Javier Acuña Llamas, Commissioner Josefina Román Vergara, Commissioner Adrián Alcalá Méndez. She also held working meetings with the Heads and representatives of the Data Protection Authorities of Turkey, Spain, Uruguay, and Great Britain. Within the framework of the meetings, the cooperation opportunities and various activities between the Personal Data Protection Service and foreign counterpart supervisory bodies were discussed in order to promote the implementation of the goals set by the GPA strategy, the discussion also regarded the participation and role of the Personal Data Protection Service of Georgia in the working groups operated under the Assembly.