US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly C. Degnan attended the presentation of the Women Fund “Sukhumi” project in Kutaisi. The meeting was held at the office of the project partner - the Association "Peaceful and Business Caucasus" with the participation of representatives of USAID and the US Embassy in Georgia.
The Women Fund "Sukhumi" and the Association "Peaceful and Business Caucasus" presented the results of the USAID project, achieved during the two-year work.
US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly C. Degnan thanked the project representatives for their good and important work in strengthening the capacity of civil society, developing economic and medical directions, for helping to restore confidence and strengthen lasting peace.
During the meeting, gratitude was expressed to the US Embassy for almost the first serious support to the Fund “Sukhumi”, which made it possible to strengthen the organization and create a good background. Subsequently, the Embassy repeatedly financed important project proposals of the Fund "Sukhumi" to support and protect women's rights.
The project is implemented with the support of the USAID
An online information meeting was held with Zugdidi Women Initiative Group. The participants got acquainted with the tasks of the strategy, which were developed with the involvement of local government representatives at a workshop held in Kutaisi.
The meeting also evaluated the dynamics of the advocacy process. Solving problems raised by the groups will benefit the community. This will be good not only for internally displaced women and young people, but also for every resident of the municipality.
The project is implemented with the support
of the UN Women organization
Problems of health, education, employment and security, faulty infrastructure, lack of access to the Internet are issues that IDPs are concerned about and that can be addressed by the inclusion of state structures.
Member of the Parliament of Georgia Teona Akubardia and UN Women's consultant Mako Avaliani met with IDP women from Abkhazia and women living in the villages located near the occupation line.
The meeting, which was held in Zugdidi, was attended by five representatives of Zugdidi and Senak initiative groups of the Women Fund "Sukhumi". They are active participants in the coalition project "Women and youth localizing the women, peace and security agenda".
The meeting was organized by the Women Fund “Sukhumi” and the Association “Consent”.
The project is implemented with the support
of the UN Women organization
Brother and sister, doctors from Ukraine. They faced the horrors of war and miraculously survived. In September they arrived from Kharkov to Kutaisi. Their parents worked here as military doctors, they finished from school in Kutaisi, they have friends and acquaintances here.
They told psychologist Manana Gotsiridze that they still wake up from the voice of a siren, a harbinger of death.
“It is hard to imagine whether our city will return its former beauty. Almost all residential buildings were destroyed In Kharkov. There are a lot of stones, glass, iron everywhere... The inhabitants faced the second wave of psychosis when they realized that the war could go on for a long time. War is the fear that the enemy can rape, kill. This is a state of hopelessness. Even after it ends, it will affect the psychics of people for a long time.”
These are the words of our beneficiaries.
All feelings of Ukrainians are similar. Pain, anxiety... There is also some joys for the fact that some towns and villages are returning.
According to the participants, listening to successful women and peace initiatives will contribute to the activation of women and promotion of peace issues. What can young people do to establish a culture of peace in their municipalities - the members of Tskaltubo and Senaki youth groups talked about these issue. The meetings in both places were held on the background of discussion, exchange of interesting ideas and discussions about future plans.
The project is implemented with the support of the USAID
Our group, which supports Ukrainian refugees, worked actively in November, as in previous months. For the given moment we have 383 people in our database, in November we added 53 new people. This month, 42 families (95 people) were assisted, 3 families were given warm blankets, 4 families - heaters. One man was helped with paying for medical procedures (oncology) and special food was purchased.
Slippers and linen were also distributed. Assistance to pay for housing continues, this month 4 more families were added, one of which lives in Tbilisi. Since the couple is elderly, as an exception, the Fund took the responsibility to pay for their accommodation. Ukrainian refugees continue to receive free psychological assistance and support.
- In the City Hall of Kutaisi, issuing of personal travel cards was finished and now they are working on single assistance for children, from our we help them in communication, - says Sophia Tsirgvava, an assistant for working with Ukrainians. - The program of free education for Ukrainian children STEM, in English, continues to function. We picked up children of the appropriate age and sent them to the Kutaisi project coordinator. Work on other issues are also in progress.
The project is implemented with the support of the organization Brot
für die Welt - Evangelischer Entwicklungsdienst (Germany)
The members of women initiative groups of Khoni municipality and Kutaisi discussed the activities developed by the strategy of "Resolution 1325" and noted the necessity and importance of women's involvement. Then they planned events to be held within the framework of the 16-day international campaign. As for the members of Khoni youth group, they actively work to implement the activities developed at the civil forum and play an important role in introducing the culture of peace and restoring trust. For the members of Kutaisi Youth Initiative Group, the training conducted by the representatives of the Fund "Sukhumi" on the topic: "Women and youth in the peace movement, promoting the implementation of UN Resolution 1325 and 2250" was particularly interesting.
The project is implemented with the support of the USAID
Minister of State for Reconciliation and Civil Equality - Thea Akhvlediani, the "Consultative Council of Experts Working on Reconciliation and Engagement Policy Issues" and the "Women, Peace and Security - Advisory Platform on Strengthening Women's Effective Participation in the Peacebuilding Process" (of which the Women's Fund “Sukhumi” is a member) held a work-meeting with them.
Civil society representatives spoke about the challenges faced by the population near the dividing line, emphasized the need to make more efforts of peace building, to strengthen and develop the existing programs for restoring trust and reconciliation between the conflict divided communities. The members of the platforms at the State Minister's Office expressed their readiness to continue close cooperation with the Minister.
At the Peace & Justice café (Hague, Netherlands), in person and online discussion about diverse topics with involvement of wide spectrum of civil society organizations, academia, young activists, students from different countries was held.
The main idea of the event was to discuss the advances and challenges on the path towards gender justice, the ways in which women’s involvement affects and strengthens peace processes, and to gain insights from organizations across sectors making a difference.
With the support of the UN Women Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia, one of the roundabout was moderated by the representative of Women Fund "Sukhumi" -Ekaterine Gamakharia. The topic of discussion was "Translating WPS commitments to results – women’s solidarity and joint actions".
During round table, the barriers to women’s meaningful participation in leadership and decision-making, community mobilization and international standards for making women’s contribution visible and recognized, importance of promoting intergenerational cooperation and creating favorable conditions for youth involvement were discussed.
The Peace & Justice Café provides series of networking event cross-sectoral connection and collaboration for a more peaceful and just world. Launched by the Hague Humanity Hub in collaboration with the Municipality of The Hague, it engages the peacebuilders, justice innovators, researchers, humanitarians, impact entrepreneurs, policy makers, and other changemakers from The Hague and beyond.
