Georgian and Moldovan LAGs strengthening linkages for future Rural Development Cooperation
From the 26th to the 28th October, Action Against Hunger South Caucasus and the Georgian Association of Local Action Groups (GALAG) hosted a delegation from the National Moldova LEADER Network in Zugdidi. The purpose of this visit was to promote linkages between Local Action Groups (LAGs) In Georgia and Moldova while creating an environment of learning and collaboration between both parties.
As Nino Tikurishvili, GALAG Chairperson says “This is a very important meeting for Georgian LAGs and our LEADER programmes in Georgia as our Moldovan Colleagues have great experiences to share in regard to both developing LEADER programmes and coordinating with Government offices, such as the Ministry of Agriculture. This transnational meeting will also improve inter-LAG and coordination between our two countries.”
Starting in Tbilisi on the 26th October, the delegation was joined by members of Akhmeta LAG and representation from Action Against Hunger, and on their journey to Zugdidi, they stopped along the way to visit important Georgian tourism and cultural sites such as the Chronicles of Georgia, followed by Jvari Monastery.
On the morning of the 27th October the group participated in a Summary Workshop in the Zugdidi Tech Park for the Transnational Project that they have been working on for the past 12 months. The transnational project has seen Georgian and Moldovan LAGs develop tourist trails in their respective regions - such as the Urta-Tsaishi Walking Trail in Zugdidi - and the workshop gave them a chance to exchange experiences. The project and workshop was supported by funding from Austrian Development Cooperation.
The workshop was hosted by Zugdidi LAG and the Deputy Mayor of Zugdidi Municipality, Konstantine Kakava gave the opening address. Additionally, a representative from the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) joined the workshop online to provide information on tourism development supported under the GRETA project
Ani Gabelia, a participant of the Zugdidi transnational project said “Today, we had an interesting, productive and fruitful day because we hosted people from Moldovan LAGs and Akhmeta LAG. I got to talk about the creation of the Urta-Tsaishi walking Trail which I was involved in the creation of as part of the Transnational Project between Georgia and Moldova. I am very happy to have been both part of this project and of today’s meeting.”
Following this workshop, the delegation was able to visit three beneficiaries who had received grant support from the project "Improving local governance through inclusive development approaches" from Zugdidi LAG with funding from Austrian Development Cooperation. Firstly, the tour visited Marika Gabisonia’s beauty salon. This was followed by a visit to Tea Kvitandze’s Dried Fruit Business where Tea shared details of her production and the tour had the opportunity to sample some of her products.
The group then visited Khatuna Baramia who has used the grant funding and training under the project to establish a greenhouse and produce her own vegetables for sale. Khatuna welcomed the delegation with many traditional dishes from West Georgia as she described her experiences of the granting process and the support of Zugdidi LAG.
Following these visits there was an opportunity for some free time which was used to travel to Anaklia, to spend some time at the seaside, which gave the opportunity for the various LAGs to create social bonds which will be of tremendous benefit in future collaborations.
Speaking at the end of the visit, Ana Cerneva, Executive Director of the National Moldova LEADER Network, spoke highly of the event and looked to the future, saying “ We have been cooperating with Action Against Hunger for several years, and this event is a result of our joint projects and will be a new step for our future cooperation. Today's event is the start of new cooperation. It was also very interesting for us to give a presentation about our LAGs and to learn more about the the LAGs from Georgia.”
