A €10 million project will be launched in Georgia’s Black Sea region of Adjara to promote rural development and small and medium-sized businesses in the region.
This is the EU-funded project ‘ENPARD-3: Improving Rural Development in Georgia’ which will be implemented with the financial contribution of the government of Adjara.
The agreement was signed today between the parties which implies that the government of Adjara will contribute €230,000 to enhance the implementation of regional components of a €10 million EU-funded project.
Under the agreement, in the period of 2018-2022, the EU, in cooperation with UNDP, will assist in developing economic alternatives outside agriculture for families in Adjara’s rural areas and support the region’s government to develop and implement effective rural development policies.
This new initiative gives us a chance to help Ajara families build sustainable livelihoods where farming is no longer profitable”, said Head of UNDP Georgia Louisa Vinton.
The assistance to Adjara comes as a component of the third phase of the EU’s European Neighbourhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD), which has been implemented in Georgia since 2013 with a total budget of €179.5 million.
The first phase focused on developing the country’s agricultural potential, while the second and third phases aim to create economic opportunities for the rural population that go beyond agricultural activities.