BackA learning initiative to help Ombudsman officers across Europe deliver quality services to the citizen was launched on January 16, 2024, in Manchester, UK. The Learning Academy of the European Chapter of the International Ombudsman Institute (IOI) will serve as a specialized forum and training center where Ombudsmen and their officers will exchange ideas and practices, and develop new skills and modes of cooperation.
IOI Europe President, Andreas Pottakis, noted in his opening remarks:
Today we open a new chapter in Ombudsman learning. The Ombudsman Learning Academy will be a hub for sharing experience and best practices among Ombudsman institutions and for researching new tools for our daily work. It will help Ombudsman officers develop new capacities and strengthen the impact of their interventions in order to improve the quality and efficiency of our services to our fellow citizens.
IOI Europe Vice President, Rob Behrens, said in his welcoming address:
This is a key moment in the history of IOI. The Learning Academy addresses the cetral issue of continuing professional development to enable all Ombudsman officers to address even more effectively the issues of citizen and human rights in the delivery of public services.
The first two-day session, organized in Manchester, in January 16-17, 2024, involved 18 officers from the Ombudsman institutions of Estonia, Greece, Netherlands, Portugal and Slovenia.
Source: The Office of the IOI Regional President Europe and Greek Ombudsman
