EU and UNDP help Georgia’s Rural Regions During COVID-19 Crisis

On 7 May, the EU and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) launched a grant programme amounting to over €2.5 million. The aim of the initiative is to boost rural entrepreneurship, create sustainable jobs, improve the management of natural resources and promote climate action.

The programme will be implemented in eight municipalities – Akhalkalaki, Borjomi, Dedoplistskaro, Kazbegi, Keda, Khulo, Lagodekhi and Tetritskaro – where UNDP and the EU are working together to promote livelihoods outside agriculture. Applicants can be based elsewhere in Georgia but will need to show a connection with the targeted municipalities.

“The grant programme is a flexible and effective instrument for strengthening the rural economy,” said Levan Davitashvili, Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture (MEPA) of Georgia. “It will help diversify economic activities in Georgia’s regions and foster non-farming businesses across the country.”

“The EU is mobilising all possible resources to assist Georgia to recover from the current crisis. I am especially glad that these grants will target rural areas around the country, where economic development can be a challenge even in normal times,” said EU Ambassador Carl Hartzell.

The Rural Development Programme is assisting non-agricultural business start-ups and growing enterprises with grants worth up to GEL 170,000 per project. Additional grants worth up to GEL 30,000 will be provided to businesses to improve energy efficiency. To ensure sustainability, all grantees are expected to provide at least 20% co-financing for their projects. Applications for the current round are due by 1 August 2020.

More information is available at www.arda.gov.ge