Rural Development Strategy of Georgia 2017-2020.

The Rural Development Strategy is a national multi-sectoral strategy of Georgia for the period of 2017-2020. Its main strategic objective is ensuring the constant improvement of the quality of life, and the social conditions of the rural population, based on a combination of increased economic opportunities, more accessible social benefits, a rich cultural life, environmental protection and the sustainable management of natural resources.
The Strategy seeks to make natural resources more productive and sustainable. Its objectives include the improvement of the management of water, forest and other resources in targeted rural areas; the promotion of sustainable systems of waste management in rural areas; and undertaking activities used to mitigate the negative impact of climate change.
Further the document aims to reduce rural poverty. In particular, it provides for raising awareness in innovation and entrepreneurship; promotion of cooperation through contributing to the skills development and employment issues (especially for young people and women); improvement of basic rural infrastructure (including the roads leading to cultural heritage sites and other relevant infrastructure); and the availability of high-quality public services, including information and communication technologies; as well as increasing the involvement of rural population (especially youth and women) in the identification of local needs and the determination of solutions to these needs.
In order to enable more inclusive and efficient agricultural and food systems, the following measures are set out: economic recovery of farming, restructuring and modernization through the diversification and development of effective supply chains; diversification of the rural economy through strengthening the agricultural-related value chain and promoting various sustainable non-agricultural activities; and the development of tourism in rural areas, based on rural specificity and unique cultural identity.
The implementation of Georgia’s Rural Development Strategy will be coordinated by the Rural Development Coordination Council, which will ensure the inclusion of each relevant governmental institution in this process. The Ministry of Agriculture of Georgia is the leading institution in the process of the implementation of rural development Strategy and Action Plan and leads the Coordination Council. For the effective implementation of the Strategy and the Action Plan, the Coordination Council will closely cooperate with local authorities, the private sector, and civil society. The agreed upon indicators, reflecting the baseline situation, the situation related to the implementation of activities under the Action Plan, their immediate results and final goals, will be used for the common monitoring and evaluation system.