National Preventive Mechanism HYGIENIC CONDITION OF THE ALIMENTARY UNITS In the Akhaltsikhe Boarding School, the kitchen is an average-sized room, which requires repairs; The room has no ventilation system; The floor is covered with tiles, but the tiles have partly come off and the concrete surface is visible. A plastic sheet is attached to the ceiling. There are a lot of insects in the kitchen and canteen. The canteen is also in need of repairs; it has a cobblestone floor, with stones off in some places. The menu for the children is written on a small board in the room. At the time of the monitoring, repairs had been completed recently in the kitchens and storerooms of some of the boarding schools, though they did not meet the necessary requirements for safe preparation of food products. Specifically, the alimentary unit in the Kutaisi Boarding School is divided into food preparation and washing sections, though there are no separate tables for processing vegetables, raw meat, and fish in the food preparation section. There are no anti-insect netson the windows (the Chiatura Boarding School, the Kutaisi Boarding School, School No. 202), and there are no foot-pedal garbage bins for food waste in the kitchens (the Chiatura Boarding School, the Tbilisi Boarding School No. 200). CLEAN WATER It should be noted that the boarding schools in Georgia’s provinces are often supplied with water with schedule (the Akhaltsikhe Boarding School, the Kutaisi Boarding School), or they use water collected and provided in water tanks. However, at the time of the monitoring, none of the boarding schools were able to show us a certificate confirming assessment of usefulness of drinking water. CONDITIONS OF STORAGE OF FOOD PRODUCTS The boarding schools purchase food products on the basis of agreements concluded by the school directors with sole entrepreneurs. However, there are cases when the rules of acquisition and storage are violated. In Akhatsikhe, the storeroom is damp, old, and in need of repairs. The procedure of marking and storage of food products was not observed. The refrigerator in the storeroom contained 10 semi-smoked “Kolkhiduri” sausages; 3 boiled “Sagazapkhulo sausages” (6 kg) produced by Tao-Food LLC, without production and expiry dates; 8 kg of frankfurter sausages – the so-called “Tkatsuna” (according to the letter of the school director) – without an inscription; and 2 packages (5 kg) of Turkish macaroni “Guild”, without an indication of the expiry date. The freezer contained frozen fish and chicken that were kept together. The storeroom of the Chiatura Boarding School contained dry food products, vegetables, and old furniture – all kept together. The monitoring group saw unmarked products – macaroni produced by Goliatebi LLC in 5-kg packages, without a production date, with a storage period of 12 months; and Lux premium quality vermicelli, in 5-kg packages, without production and expiry dates. The newly renovated storeroom in the Kutaisi institution does not have a ventilation system or a small window for natural ventilation; for this reason, vegetables are kept in a refrigerator to keep them from spoiling. In addition, the acceptance-delivery acts do not contain information about the validity of food. Public Defender of Georgia addresses the Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia with a recommendation to: Ensure the introduction of the principles of full, diverse, and safe nutrition in the boarding schools for children with disabilities. www.ombudsman.ge NPM Report