February 25, 2020. Bulachauri – CENN will organize the next meeting of the Steering Committee established within the EU-supported ENPARD projects, “Keda LEADER” and “EMBRACE Tsalka.” The event will take place on February 25 at the Bulachauri Green Center.

For now, the Keda and Tsalka Local Action Groups (LAGs) have been established and are actively working within the aforementioned projects, and local development strategy documents for both municipalities have been developed. Taking into account the needs specified in the strategy document, Keda Municipality successfully completed the second grant competition and funded more than 40 projects.

During the meeting, the invited guests will get acquainted with the activities carried out within the framework of the projects, as well as discuss potential activities of the projects in order to effectively collaborate with other projects within the ENPARD program for successful future activities. In addition, representatives of the various ENPARD Programs and LAGs will present the results achieved within the project, which will facilitate the development of cooperation between projects.

The event will host representatives from the Ministry of the Environment Protection and Agriculture of Georgia, the Delegation of the European Union to Georgia, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Georgia, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Georgia and other ENPARD partner organizations in the country. This networking platform will be a good opportunity to strengthen linkages and partnership opportunities among participants, exchange feedback or suggestions for further development and share experiences.

The EU-supported ENPARD projects “Embrace Tsalka” and “Keda Leader is implemented by CENN in partnership with the Center for Strategic Research and Development of Georgia (CSRDG), Institute of Democracy (IoD), Austrian Institute for Regional Studies and Spatial Planning (ÖIR), the Georgian Farmers’ Association (GFA) and Institute for Rural Development Research (IfLS). The project aims at diversifying the local economic activities, improving 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 rural population that go beyond agricultural activities. More information on ENPARD is available at: www.enpard.ge.

More information about the Keda and  Tsalka Local Action Groups (LAGs) is available on the official websites: www.kedalag.ge and www.tsalkalag.ge

Media Contacts:

• Marie Kikvadze, CENN Communications Assistant, +995 577 95 90 20, marie.kikvadze@cenn.org
• Tamar Khuntsaria, Team Leader, ENPARD Communication Unit, +995 595 98 99 16, tamar.k@actionprgroup.com