In Georgia, the Office of the Public Defender (Ombudsperson) (PDO) has partnered with international organizations and civil society to advocate for access to healthcare for citizens residing in territory not under the control of the Georgian government.

Because there are difficulties in physically accessing citizens in territory that is not under the control of state authorities in Georgia (e.g. Abkhazia and South Ossetia), the PDO collaborates with both local and international organizations that have this access. These partnerships have enabled the PDO to gather important information on human rights compliance in these territories, for example by identifying limitations on access to healthcare for residents in the Abkhazian district of Gali. These findings led the PDO to develop partnerships with local organizations to jointly lobby Georgian authorities to allow residents of Gali to access healthcare in mainland Georgia.

These advocacy efforts were successful, and the population of Gali now benefits from a state-sponsored referral programme, enabling them to access healthcare facilities in mainland Georgia, thereby contributing to realizing SDG 3 on good health and wellbeing as well as SDG 16.10 on (access to information and) fundamental freedoms.