On 23rd of July, Khulo Local Action Group (LAG) approved Local Development Strategy. Strategy was developed with financial support of the European Union (EU) under the European Neighbourhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD) and the Czech Republic development agency project: “Rural Development and Diversification in Khulo Municipality”. This project is implemented by Caritas Czech Republic in Georgia (CCRG) in partnership with Croatian rural development network – HMRR and PMC Research Center.
The Local Development Strategy (LDS) of Khulo Municipality provides a framework to support the socio-economic development of the municipality and improve the quality of life of its residents. LDS was developed based on a wide range of consultations with local communities, civil society, business sector and local authorities. The document was designed using LEADER approach, which provides rural communities with a tool for engaging with stakeholders in local development.
On 25th of July, 2018, Khulo LAG together with Caritas Czech Republic in Georgia (CCRG) introduced Khulo Local Development Strategy to local government representatives.
The objectives of the meeting were to present the outline of LDS priority themes and all objectives and actions connected with them. On the meeting there was also presented RD grant manual.
The meeting was attended by Khulo municipality mayor Mr. Gocha Meladze and deputy mayor Mr. Lasha Bolkvadze, representatives of Khulo city hall departments, representatives of Khulo mayor in the communities, ENPARD Khulo team and LAG members.
LAG active member Guram Abuladze presented LDS document. He introduced all important components of the strategy as are LAG and LEADER approach, community involvement, stakeholder analysis, innovation and networking, communication and publicity, overall risk analysis, monitoring and evaluation. Six priority themes of the strategy were underlined:
At the end Q&A session was organized, participants received exhaustive answers to all questions. The representative of Khulo city hall were asked by mayor to review LDS thoroughly and he promised LAG that Khulo city hall will be involve in the LDS implementation process actively.
The EU is supporting agriculture and rural development in Georgia through its ENPARD Programme. Implemented since 2013 with a total budget of EUR 179.5 million, the main goal of ENPARD is to reduce rural poverty in Georgia. The first phase of ENPARD in Georgia focused on developing the potential of agriculture. The second and third phases of ENPARD focus on creating economic opportunities for rural population that go beyond agricultural activities. More information on ENPARD is available at: www.enpard.ge.
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