Tbilisi. The EU and UNDP are assisting nine educational institutions in Georgia to recruit and retrain youth workers. The initiative runs in partnership with the youth organization ‘Sunny House’. “On 24-30 January, participants selected for the second round attended the basic training for youth workers aimed at developing their awareness, skills and competencies”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Imereti. According to the information of the UNICEF, On February 1, UNICEF Representative in Georgia, Ghassan Khalil visited the Mayor of Kutaisi, Ioseb Khakhaleishvili and discussed how to make Kutaisi a child-friendly city. “Last year, Kutaisi joined the UNICEF-led child-friendly cities initiative. UNICEF continues to support municipalities in addressing children's rights". Read more… Source: www.unicef.org

Adjara. On January 28, with the support of the Ministry of Health of Adjara, a workshop was held in Batumi, the main topics of which were routine immunization and high levels of lead in the blood of children. „The Multi-Indicator Cluster Survey of 2018 revealed high levels of lead in the blood of children in Georgia. The results of the study were followed by the development of a state program for the prevention of lead poisoning. During the workshop, the effectiveness of the program was evaluated and the next steps were planned for 2022. It is essential that the government takes significant steps to prevent lead poisoning“. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Imereti. A memorandum of understanding was signed, on the one hand, between the Local Democracy Agency Georgia (LDA Georgia) and Education Development and Employment Center (EDEC) and, on the other hand, the City Hall of Baghdati Municipality. “The purpose of the memorandum of understanding is to strengthen the Youth Council in Baghdati Municipality, to increase cooperation about youth issues, to develop and implement an effective mechanism for communication with local and international organizations and local youth”. The meeting was organized by LDA Georgia within the “Civil Society STAR Initiative” project funded by the European Union (EU) and Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS). The project is implemented by the Consortium led by the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) and composed of the following CSOs: Center for Strategic Research and Development of Georgia (CSRDG), Civil Society Institute (CSI), Center for Training and Consultancy (CTC), Education Development and Employment Center (EDEC), and Institute for European Politics (IEP). Read more… Source: The organizations

Tbilisi. European Union is glad to be part of an appreciation event organised by World Vision Georgia for foster parents and social workers in Georgia. “Their work and commitment in making a difference in the lives of vulnerable children is admirable, and we are proud to support them. Together with World Vision, we are working on child welfare and protection”. Find out more... Source: eeas.europa.eu

Tbilisi. International Association "Civitas Georgica" in cooperation with the non-governmental organization "Millennium" has launched a new project in Armenia and Georgia "Combating Migration Impact On Left-Over Children”. “The project aims combating migration impact on left behind children in Georgia and Armenia through upscaling the issue, raising public responsibility and supporting migrant families to ensure the harmonious development of children in an atmosphere of happiness and love”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. According to the information of the European Union 90 young people have been engaged in Innovation Knowledge Hubs, supported by the EU, and recently received acknowledgement for their activities. “Find out more about these platforms where young people will lead events, projects and campaigns related to social and green entrepreneurship and youth development”. Read more… Source: eu4georgia.eu

Tbilisi. European union supports the first VET school of social entrepreneurship in Georgia. “The opening of a vocational school of social entrepreneurship is very important. The project aims at provision of knowledge-based practice to beneficiaries aged 18 to 29, from Kakheti , Shida Kartli and Tbilisi, that will master their skills needed for future professional development and employment opportunities”. Read more… Source: eu4georgia.eu

Shida kartli. On December 28, 2021, Shida Kartli Regional Hub - Society Biliki hosted the information meeting with youth who would like to become members of the Youth Club. The Youth Club runs the activities within the EU and Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) funded project "Civil Society STAR Initiative". Read more… Source: The project page on the social network

Tbilisi. The Dighomi flood plains on the outskirts of Tbilisi are home to over 20 species of rare birds, like the kingfisher, great white egret, small white egret and night egret. “With our support, up to 50 students visited the Dighomi flood plain to study, observe and spot these rare birds by sound or appearance”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. The Public Defender of Georgia publishes a special report on the legal status of the children of the St. Nino orphanage in Javakheti Ninotsminda. "The results of the study showed that despite the steps taken after the events of spring 2021, the boarding school still faces a number of challenges, both in terms of producing documentation for the institution and caregivers, as well as assessing and meeting the individual needs of minors, including bio-psycho-social needs. The issue of communication and exchange of information between agencies and institutions working with children is problematic and ineffective, which has a negative impact on the process of meeting the needs of minors and is against their interests," the study said. Read more…  Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. The Social Justice Center publishes a blog post by Tigran Tarzyan reviewing problems of children left without pre-school education in the Javakheti region. “There neither was and nor is a kindergarten in the village where I live, even though currently there reside about 15 children of kindergarten age there. Everyday village life is hard. It is exhausting work, long working day, a lot of things to do both indoor and outdoor. Morning starts early by performing household and domestic chores. Each member of a family has a particular duty. Everyone works from morning till late at night. Even children are not exception. In the village, they are also involved in the work process and, consequently, they miss the opportunity of age-appropriate upbringing and education. The fact that education is not available from an early age aggravates the situation related to integration of children belonging to ethnic minorities. They do not learn the language and that further worsens the situation”. Read more… Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Samtskhe-Javakheti. The Social Justice Center presents the third episode of stories about women from villages of the Javakheti region. “Previously, girls used to get married right after they became 18 years, while nowadays many prefer to study. I would like all of them to study...” Source: socialjustice.org.ge

Tbilisi. ISFED, supported by Black Sea Trust, launches a project – “Empowerment of young civic leaders in Georgia”. “Within the framework of the project, there is conducted a session of civic education trainings aiming to form a diverse group of motivated young leaders, who are going to use relevant skills and knowledge in the future so as to actively engage in social and political activities. At the end of trainings, young leaders will develop projects according to needs of their region and community, while ISFED will support to implement them. After completion of the project, some of the participants will undergo an internship at leading local or international organizations”. Read more… Source: The website of the organization on a social network ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. On International Human Rights Day, December 10, the opening event of IDFI’s Winter School "Rule of Law and Human Rights" was held. The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th-year law school students of the universities authorized in Georgia participate in the winter school. The following important issues will be discussed within the scope of the school: the principle of separation of powers, constitutional control and litigation, the independence of the judiciary, open governance and accountability of the government, freedom of information, the right to private and family life, the role of the Public Defender and the State Inspector’s service, freedom of expression. Read more…  Source: The webpage of the organization

Tbilisi. According to the information of Rondeli Foundation the training programme for Georgia's future civil service leaders has been launched. “The first lecture on national security was conducted by Giorgi Bilanishvili, a research fellow at the Rondeli Foundation. The director of the Eesti Diplomaatide Kool/Estonian School of Diplomacy, Mr. Ekke Nõmm has welcomed the first cohort of the programme virtually”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. On November 27-28, a seminar on child rights for parliamentarians and the Permanent Parliamentary Council on Child Rights was organized by the Parliament of Georgia and UNICEF. “The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, its basic principles, and general implementation mechanisms were discussed at the seminar”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Kakheti. On November 18-22, 2021 Rondeli Foundation organized another round of the regional training program Youth for Changes, this time in Telavi. During five days, the young activists representing Kakheti region got acquainted with the key foreign and domestic policy issues, as well as political ideologies and electoral processes in Georgia. The project also promotes skill development in areas of policy analysis and advocacy. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. The Public Defender of Georgia is responding to the statement made by Gigi Ugulava during a rally on November 9, 2021, which poses a threat to the child's psycho-emotional state and violates the best interest of the child- to be protected from any form of violence. The Public Defender emphasizes that it is inadmissible to use children, their personal lives and family status as tools of political debate. Read more… Source: ombudsman.ge

Tbilisi. Georgian Democracy Initiative (GDI) publishes an analysis of decisions made by the National Communications Commission on the issue of protection of rights of children. The organization has reviewed decisions made in regard to unsuitable programs for minors and considers that the Commission finds it difficult to set specific standards for general and, in some cases, vague perceptions stipulated by law. Read more… Source: gdi.ge

Tbilisi. UNICEF Georgia releases an article: Four things you can do to support your teen’s mental health. Whether you and your teen are getting along well or having challenges, it is important to show that you love and support them, that you can help them navigate tough times and that you are always there for them. Here are four things to keep in mind when having that ‘how-are-you-doing?’ conversation with your teen and to show that you are always there for them. Encourage them to share their feelings Take the time to support them Work through conflict together Care for yourself Read more… Source: www.unicef.org

Children and young people could feel the impact of COVID-19 on their mental health and well-being for many years to come, UNICEF warned in its flagship report today. “According to the latest available estimates, more than 1 in 7 adolescents aged 10–19 is estimated to live with a diagnosed mental disorder globally. Almost 46,000 adolescents die from suicide each year, among the top five causes of death for their age group. Meanwhile, wide gaps persist between mental health needs and mental health funding. The report finds that about 2 per cent of government health budgets are allocated to mental health spending globally”. Read the press release... Source: www.unicef.org