On 7 February 2019, representatives of the Ministry of Environment Protection and Agriculture of Georgia, Ministry of Agriculture of Ajara AR and ENPARD implementing partners gathered at the second Steering Committee meeting organised by ENPARD partner CENN under the organization’s ongoing EU-supported project “Keda LEADER”. The event took place at the Bulachauri Green Center and it aimed at introducing the progress within the project and exchanging information and recommendations among involved counterparts.
Opening remarks were delivered by CENN Keda LEADER project manager Nino Gaprindashvili and Deputy Minister of Agriculture of Adjara A/R Jambul Khozrevanidze.
„The steering committee was created in the framework of the “Keda LEADER” project. Its members include public institutions, ENPARD partners and non-governmental organizations that work on issues of regional and rural development. The steering committee is an important tool for coordination between relevant stakeholders and the project team. The Steering committee is an annual event and this year, CENN hosted the second meeting under our EU supported project” – said Nino Gaprindashvili.
In addition, the presentations were delivered by Giorgi Abuladze, Chair of Keda LAG, who spoke about the current state and future plans of the ENPARD project and LAG activities in Keda Municipality. Number of possible joint initiatives aiming at strengthening partnerships between Georgian LAGs and their corresponding municipalities were announced. Amongst other respective guests were also Nodar Kereselidze, National Project Manager at UNDP Georgia who gave an overview of the planned actions within ENPARD III; and Javier Sanz Alvarez, Programme Officer for FAO-ENPARD projects in Georgia, who presented the points on FAO support to agriculture sector in Georgia under ENPARD III.
The EU-supported ENPARD project is implemented by CENN in partnership with the Center for Strategic Research and Development of Georgia (CSRDG), Institute of Democracy (IoD) and Austrian Institute for Regional Studies and Spatial Planning (ÖIR). The project aims at diversifying the local economic activities, improving the investment climate, and empowering competitive agricultural and environmental practices in Keda Municipality via bottom-up strategic planning of rural development.
The EU is supporting agriculture and rural development in Georgia through its ENPARD Programme. Implemented since 2013 with a total budget of EUR 179.5 million, the main goal of ENPARD is to reduce rural poverty in Georgia. The first phase of ENPARD in Georgia focused on developing the potential of agriculture. The second and third phases of ENPARD focus on creating economic opportunities for the rural population that go beyond agricultural activities. More information on ENPARD is available at: www.enpard.ge.
More information about the Keda Local Action Group (LAG) is available on the official website: www.kedalag.ge
Media Contacts:
Nino Gaprindashvili, CENN Project Manager, +995 593 92 48 44, gaprindashvili@cenn.org.
Tamar Khuntsaria, Team Leader, ENPARD Communication Unit, +995 595 98 99 16, k@actionprgroup.com