Gender equality at the heart of development

To help Georgia overcome gender equality challenges, three UN agencies (UNDP, UN Women and UNFPA), supported by the Government of Sweden, work together in the three main areas: (1) political and economic empowerment of women, (2) elimination of gender-based violence, and (3) realization of sexual and reproductive rights. Since 2012, the programme has contributed to a number of policy and legislative initiatives, as well as community activities, research and communications campaigns.    

Gender equality and rural development

In Georgia, as in many other countries, rural women are the backbone of rural economy and the agents of transformational change for better life and sustainable development. Georgia is undergoing a fundamental reform of rural development aiming to create stronger policies and introduce successful practices for the benefit of people and communities. UNDP’s assistance to the reform process is focused on creating equal social and economic opportunities for the rural population ensuring sustainable growth of Georgia’s rural areas that leaves no one behind.

Gender equality and effective local self-governance

UNDP assists Georgia to implement a systemic reform of local and regional governance, increase citizen engagement in decision-making and create an enabling environment for the local economic growth. Political empowerment of women is a critical element of this effort, especially considering the country's unresolved challenges in gender parity and equal representation - Georgia has only 14% of women in local councils and the overall engagement of citizens in local self-governance stays as low as 20%. In 2013, UNDP contributed to the establishment of the Women Councillors Forum that unites over 200 female members of local self-government from all regions of Georgia and offers important tools for networking, participation and professional development.

Gender equality and climate change

Environmental challenges and climate change risks affect all social groups but have different effects on men and women. Economic and social inequalities, lack of empowerment, as well as traditional roles in families and society, put women at greater risks and make them more vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change.

UNDP is assisting the government and other national stakeholders in Georgia to acknowledge a gender dimension of environmental governance and consider it as a cross-sectoral issue in the environmental policy making. UNDP’s programmes for renewable energy solutions, disaster risk reduction, biodiversity conservation, green urban development and community-based environmental initiatives consider vital linkages between gender norms and sustainable environment, and mainstream gender equality into the environmental programmes and policies.