Women and youth will benefit from new project on inclusive rural development and sustainable agriculture in Georgia

On 25 April, Otar Shamugia, the Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia and Raimund Jehle, Representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Georgia signed a project agreement for EUR 4 million, financed by the Austrian Development Cooperation (ADC) on “Inclusive Rural Development and Sustainable Agriculture.” The goal of the project is to foster increased competitiveness within the agricultural sector, improve the effectiveness of policies related to gender responsive and social inclusivity, enhance food production, and concurrently alleviate rural poverty, with a specific emphasis on mitigating inequalities faced by women and youth.

The project targets farmers, farmers’ associations/cooperatives, rural households, educational institutions, private sector representatives and family farmers in the two pilot municipalities that will be selected through consultations with the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia, ADC and other stakeholders at the initial stage.

“The project we signed today involves establishing a continuous dialogue with the relevant line ministries to improve the effectiveness of the policies supporting gender-responsive and socially inclusive rural development, with a specific focus on women and youth,” Jehle said. ”We strongly believe that the mobilisation and empowering of these two social groups will be instrumental to inject new ideas and innovative approaches for the development of the country’s rural areas. Special attention will also be paid to the inclusion of other possibly vulnerable groups, such as people with disabilities, elderly and minorities.” 

The project will involve the technical support of local and international experts. After its implementation, policy advice will be provided to the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia and municipal governments on gender-responsive and socially inclusive rural development; capacities of farmers, producer groups, youth, and women, as well as, extension services related to sustainable food systems will be strengthened and awareness in the population on cross-cutting issues in rural development will be increased. 

©FAO