On 17 September, in Tbilisi, the final working day of the High-Level International Conference of the International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN), organised by the Georgian Competition and Consumer Agency, will take place. The day's programme will be opened by Irakli Lekvinadze, Chairman of the Georgian Competition and Consumer Agency, who will summarise the principal outcomes of, and issues addressed during, the preceding two days.
One of the main thematic areas of the conference's closing day concerns the challenges and experience accumulated in consumer protection across Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus. Within the session "Regional Perspectives on Consumer Protection: Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus", the heads of the relevant agencies of Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia will be joined on a single panel together with the representative of Bulgaria's Consumer Protection Commission. The panel is of particular significance in the context of regional cooperation, providing the heads of neighbouring agencies with an opportunity to exchange views on shared challenges in consumer protection, enforcement priorities, and practical means of strengthening cross-border cooperation. The session will be moderated by Ms Rivas, Programme Management Officer at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
The closing programme's working sessions will be devoted to regional and international cooperation in consumer protection, the challenges common to consumers, the risks arising in digital markets, and the interrelationship between competition and consumer protection policy. Particular attention will be given to effective enforcement mechanisms, the strengthening of institutional cooperation, and the development of innovative approaches to consumer protection.
Among the day's most significant events will be the 2026 Consumer Protection Awards ceremony, at which the World Bank Group and ICPEN will identify and honour outstanding, innovative and effective initiatives in consumer protection. The ceremony will constitute an important opportunity, on an international scale, to recognise achievements in the field and to share successful practice. It will be led by Ms Gasol Ramos, representing the World Bank Group, and Mr Lekvinadze, Chairman of the Georgian Competition and Consumer Agency.
The conference's third working day and the High-Level International Conference as a whole will conclude at 17:00 with closing remarks delivered by Mr Lekvinadze, Chairman of the Georgian Competition and Consumer Agency.
