Projects

Short Description:

Overall goal

At impact level project aims to contribute to the reduction of rural poverty and delivery of commitments taken by the government of Georgia under the SDGs, NDC, and EU AA with regard to sustainable green growth. The outcome of the project is to create an enabling environment and effective interagency coordina-tion for improved forest and watershed management, sustainable rural energy solutions, and diversi-fication of rural income opportunities.

Expected results

The project's expected outputs are:

Output 1: Effective intersectoral interagency cooperation for sustainable management of forest resources established and functioning.

Output 2: Regulatory framework and state programs for introduction of sustainable energy solutions prepared and related incentives created and tested.

Output 3: Government has the tools to support programs that will enable and expand job opportunities through sustainable use of rural forest-related products.

Output 4: Government has developed mechanisms for addressing integrated watershed management in the forestry sector to reduce disaster risks and improve climate resilience of local communities.

Output 5: Capacity for informed public participation and evidence-based decision-making (central and local authorities, parliament) on sustainable and efficient resource management and DRR is in place and advances delivery of SDGs (7, 8, 12, 13, 15), NDC, and EU AA targets.

Output 6: Women’s employment opportunities are increased and their income generating ability from multifunctional forest use is enhanced (SDGs 5 and 8).

Target group / Beneficiaries

The project's direct beneficiaries will be an estimated 8,330 representatives of state authorities, local authorities of the target regions, rural (especially vulnerable) communities including women and youth, private sector actors and media organisations.

Activities

The project will implement the following types of activities:

1) Building intersectoral interagency cooperation for sustainable resources management;

2) Promoting sustainable energy solutions in rural areas;

3) Stimulating income generation from sustainable use of forest-based products and services;

4) Disaster risk reduction (DRR) through improved watershed management;

5) Increasing public awareness and building knowledge for informed public participation and evidence-based decision-making; and

6) Women empowerment to increase their participation and income.

Context

Forests, which cover around 40% of Georgia’s territory, are a key resource for the country. Georgia’s forests are highly diverse; and the majority are in mountainous terrain. Besides providing livelihoods and rural energy, forests play an important role for many different reasons.

However, Georgian forests are severely degraded due to increased human pressure and unsustainable extraction of resources and require shared efforts to enforce improved and climate resilient forest management practices.

The project will work at the national and local levels and will tackle concerns faced by state and non-state actors and rural communities related to forest management and rural development.