Tbilisi. Gender, Agriculture and Rural Development in Georgia – new gender assessment report was introduced by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with the support of the European Union and Austrian Development Cooperation. Breeding livestock, producing crops and household goods, fetching water and firewood, housework, cooking for family, looking after children, the elderly and sick members of the family – this is the short list of the rural women’s obligations in Georgia. However, women’s contribution to the agricultural production remains invisible and under-recognized according to the report. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge/en

Kakheti. www.visitlagodekhi.com – A new EU-supported webpage to promote touristic potential of Lagodekhi was created by Local Action Group. "Discover the genuine nature of the Caucasus, where fruitful gardens, ancient forests and sky-reaching mountains meet.” This is a description of Lagodekhi, which you will see at the recently launched dedicated this webpage, promoting Lagodekhi municipality. The webpage was created with the support of EU through ENPARD programme by the Lagodekhi Local Action Group (LAG) youth members and European volunteers. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge/en

Ajara. On his first trip outside of Tbilisi, Carl Hartzell, recently appointed Ambassador of the European Union to Georgia, travelled to Guria and Adjara. During his visit he attended a series of project visits and events to showcase the practical impact of EU support in the regions of Georgia. In Guria the Ambassador consulted with both civil society organisations and representatives of the local government and the municipalities on current challenges and future perspectives for EU support. In full Source: http://enpard.ge/en

Ajara. More than 150 young people from five municipalities of Ajara Autonomous Republic took part in the Youth Forum on 14 October 2018 that focused on the youth leadership in rural areas. Aiming to boost the role of young people in rural development, the Youth Forum provided its participant with the opportunity to enhance their leadership skills and advance cooperation with local governments. The Forum created an excellent platform for discussing the most pressing issues faced by rural communities and encouraged young people to take part in decision-making, find proactive solutions to the problems and inspire a positive change. In full  Sourice: http://enpard.ge/en

Ajara. On Saturday, 13 October 2018, the boulevard of Alphabetic Tower was transformed into "Eurovillage” for a day, taking all visitors on a journey to the European Union with fun activities throughout the day. The guests could meet various EU-funded development programmes and find out more about how the EU is helping create more opportunities for Georgian citizens. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge/en

Tbilisi. Gender, agriculture and rural development in Georgia – was the main topic of discussion at the meeting where FAO brought together all the stakeholders and implementing partners of the EU-supported European Neighbourhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD). The participants talked about the existing gender inequalities in agriculture, their causes, and their impact on the economic and social development of rural areas. The attendees debated on the challenges, gaps and practices that are being improved or need to be considered by policy-makers to support the economic empowerment of rural women in Georgia. In full  Source: The organization’s webpage

Tbilisi More than fifty representatives of Georgian and European youth took part in a youth event organised in Tetritskaro municipality in the framework of the EU-funded project "Rural development for sustainable growth of Tetritskaro municipality”. The aim of the event was to get local young people learn more about European values and culture and give them the information about the opportunities EU creates for them in Georgia through ERASMUS + as well as ENPARD project implemented by RDFG in Tetritskaro. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Tbilisi. With EU support local development strategy was adopted in Keda, by Keda Local Action Group (LAG) in the framework of the ENPARD’s rural development project. Diversification of economic activity in rural areas, development of climate smart agricultural value chain, environmental protection, natural resources management and disaster risk reduction, education, culture, sport and support of youth activities – these are the key areas of the strategy. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Ajara. LAG board members from Keda municipality of Ajara, participated in the EU-supported training "Project Writing”. The activity, carried out under the EU’s ENPARD project "Optimizing the Potential of Local Assets for Rural Development of Keda Municipality (Keda LEADER)”, was implemented by the Center of Strategic Research and Development of Georgia (CSRDG), the partner organization of CENN. It aimed at improving project design and project writing knowledge/skills among the LAG Board members. The topics covered during the three days were needs assessment, goals and objectives, timetable, budgeting, monitoring and evaluation etc. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Ajara. On 25 August 2018, "Khulo FEST" will take place in Khulo municipality of Ajara. The festival is organized by Khulo LAG, in cooperation with municipality City Hall, with the support of EU and Caritas Czech Republic in Georgia (CCRG). The event will be held at 14:00-22:00 in front of the Khulo Drama Theater. The festival is organized in the framework of the EU funded project "Promotion of Rural Development and Diversification in Khulo Municipality” implemented by Caritas Czech Republic in Georgia (CCRG) in partnership with Croatian non-governmental organization HMRR and PMC Research Center, under the European Neighborhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD). In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Kakheti. The winners of the first round of EU-funded rural development grant competition announced in Dedoplistskaro Municipality. In the framework of the EU supported HEKS/EPER project "Promoting Citizen Engagement for Economic Development (PROCEED)” the first 32 rural development grants have been approved and respective contracts signed in Dedoplistskaro municipality. Board, based on individual scoring system, approved 32 grant applications (see below annex for complete list of winners) in the following fields: tourism – 7 grants, agriculture – 5 grants, social and education – 6 grants, culture – 1 grants, diversified business – 13 grants. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Mtskheta-Mtianeti. In the framework of the EU-funded European Neighbourhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD), the members of Borjomi and Lagodekhi Local Action Groups (LAGs) visited Kazbegi Municipality. The purpose of the visit was to participate in a fundraising training and to visit EU-funded rural development initiatives in Kazbegi Municipality. The fundraising training provided information on the practical and theoretical knowledge of the grant proposal writing and fundraising ways and methods to members of LAGs. The training was quite informative. Participants designed and presented concept notes based on the knowledge received during the sessions. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Ajara. Up to 35 representatives of the Georgian Local Action Groups from different municipalities, ENPARD partner NGOs, the Government and international experts took part in the training workshop about EU rural networks held in Batumi on 26-27 July. The training workshop was aimed to stimulate awareness rising about the EU rural networks as one of the key drivers for rural development policy implementation and facilitate the process of establishing Georgian Rural Development Network. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Ajara. With EU support Khulo Local Action Group (LAG) approved Local Development Strategy. The Strategy (LDS) of Khulo Municipality provides a framework to support the socio-economic development of the municipality and improve the quality of life of its residents. LDS was developed based on a wide range of consultations with local communities, civil society, business sector and local authorities. The document was designed using LEADER approach, which provides rural communities with a tool for engaging with stakeholders in local development. Strategy was developed with financial support of the European Union (EU) under the European Neighbourhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD) and the Czech Republic development agency project: "Rural Development and Diversification in Khulo Municipality”. This project is implemented by Caritas Czech Republic in Georgia (CCRG) in partnership with Croatian rural development network – HMRR and PMC Research Center. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Ajara. Within the framework of the "Keda Leader” project, which is being implemented with the support of the EU ENPARD program, Institute of Democracy, CENN and the Board of Keda Local Action Group (LAG) held meetings with sectoral subgroups of Keda LAG. The participants of the meetings, reviewed the final version of the Keda Rural Development Strategy (RDS) and its strategic directions. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Tbilisi. FAO brought together the stakeholders and implementing partners of the European Neighbourhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD) for the 17th ENPARD stakeholders’ meeting. The gathering aimed to share the updates within the EU supported agricultural and rural development projects, and the discussion on the "topic of the day” was focused on the access to finance for agriculture and rural development projects in Georgia and allowed for a vibrant discussion amongst the stakeholders. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Kakheti. With EU support and Initiative of Akhalkalaki LAG Youth Camp has been Started in Kakheti. The youth camp is taking place in Kvemo Alvani, Kakheti region where young people from different villages of Akhalkalaki and students of community college "Aisi” are attending. Participants will be engaged in the following activities: team building games, interesting lectures and introductions of local traditions. In frame of the project "Promoting New Approach of Rural Development in Akhalkalaki” similar youth activities are planned. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Kakheti. Katarina Mathernova, Deputy Director-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations at the European Commission, travelled to Kakheti on 16-17 July to highlight EU support for the region. Over the course of two days, Katarina Mathernova, Deputy Director General, travelled to three locations in the Kakheti region, namely Lagodekhi, Kvareli and Telavi. During her visit, Katarina Mathernova remarked, "The European Union has supported Kakheti for many years; I have witnessed some of the fruits of this support. I met with people whose lives have improved thanks to the EU, such as farmers and entrepreneurs in Lagodekhi and Kvareli. Local initiatives supported by the EU led to economic development, social benefits, and empowerment of citizens. We will step up our engagement in Kakheti, for example more energy-efficient rehabilitation of kindergartens, financial support to micro-enterprises, community centres or providing vocational education training adapted to market needs.” In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Ajara. EU-supported Workshops to Present Human Capital Analysis Results were held in Keda. Up to 160 local stakeholders, including 146 members of 9 communities, 10 representatives of LAG Board and Mayor of Keda, attended 10 workshops and one meeting with the goal to solicit feedback on the human capital analysis results in in Keda municipality of Ajara. The workshops and the meeting, carried out under the EU’s ENPARD project "Optimizing the Potential of Local Assets for Rural Development of Keda Municipality (Keda LEADER)”, was implemented by the Center of Strategic Research and Development of Georgia (CSRDG), the partner organization of CENN. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Ajara. The Keda LAG, under the EU-supported ENPARD programme implemented by CENN, hosted workshops with different sector groups. During the first stage of the workshop, the groups were presented with the results of regional analysis in different objectives carried out in the framework of the project, and, based on this analysis, the resources and potential of the region have been identified. Based on the regional analysis, participants discussed the priority objectives of the local development strategy in Keda and elaborated the result-oriented action plan. In full Source: http://enpard.ge

Kvemo Kartli. EU supported training was organized for rural development grant applicants in Dedoplistkaro. In total 36 successful grant applicants increased the knowledge on information gathering procedures, project writing, analysis methodologies and presentation techniques. The main objective of the training was to increase the practical skills of the EU-funded rural development project’s beneficiaries in business plan development and grant proposal writing. The training was specially tailored for those grant applicants who had passed the second phase of grant’s evaluation procedure and are considered to be involved in the third phase of technical assessment. In full  Source: http://enpard.ge

Ajara. EU and Georgia launch two large-scale projects to support Sustainable Rural Development under EU ENPARD Programme. EU-funded projects with budget of EUR 22 million (approx. GEL 60 million) implemented by UNDP and FAO will provide direct assistance to rural communities and support Georgian and Ajara Autonomous Republic governments on sustainable agriculture and rural development policy. In full  Source: The organization’s webpage