Georgia

More than half of Georgia’s 4.2 million population are urban dwellers, while the livelihood of 3 out of ten Georgians depends on agriculture. However, work in agriculture has been affected by the ongoing regional conflicts and displacement of the labour force. Undernourishment is a very minor problem in the country, but a lowering in Georgia’s child mortality rate (which has dropped significantly since 1990) and in stunting from child malnutrition would be a clear sign of increased food security.

FAO's main in-country programmes

Emergency Prevention System for Transboundary Animals and Plant Pests and Diseases (EMPRES) Animal Health Component
African Swine Fever has spread from Georgia to the southern Russian Federation and is the source of a major transboundary animal disease problem.

Georgia reported Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI/H5N1) outbreak in wild birds in Adlia, Adjaria Region, in February 2006. However, under the EMPRES programme the situation is constantly monitored, in particular through two FAO global projects, which aim at sustaining activities to combat and prevent HPAI.

It is noted that although Georgia is not a member of the European Commission for the Control of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (EUFMD), it is supported through the provision of quality assured vaccine against three types of FMD (A, O, Asia-1) as part of short term programme for the creation of a buffer zone against the potential entry of the disease from Turkey and Iran into the three countries of the Trans-Caucasus. The European Commission, the Health and Consumer Protection Directorate General through the EU-FMD/EC Trust Fund fund these actions. The financial contribution of the EC also included a letter of agreement with the Federal Centre For Animal Health in Vladimir, Russia, to supply surveillance support.

EMPRES Desert Locust Component
Georgia is not affected by the Desert Locust but by other locust species, mainly the Italian Locust.

Georgia is part of a regional Technical Cooperation Programme project, which was approved in February 2009 and includes nine countries (Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan). This project aims at improving national and regional locust management in Caucasus and Central Asia and was prepared on the basis of the experience gained within the EMPRES Desert Locust Programme and its long-term objective is inspired by the EMPRES approach, which promotes preventive locust control in order to reduce occurrence and intensity of locust outbreaks and to prevent major damage to agricultural production.

Emergency and Rehabilitation
Among FAO’s post-conflict priorities was the establishment of an Emergency and Rehabilitation Coordination Unit (ERCU) to provide technical assistance and coordinate the distribution of essential inputs to the most vulnerable communities. As part of the in-country interagency coordination agreements to strengthen the humanitarian response, FAO is also co-chairing the Food Security Cluster in Georgia together with the United Nations World Food Programme. Under the revised flash appeal, FAO requested US$10.6 million to restore agriculture-based production and support coordination efforts through the Food Security Cluster. To this effect, a total of US$5 million was received to ensure the distribution of concentrated animal feed, support deworming activities and local silage production and deliver emergency assistance to small-scale farmers in conflict-affected areas paving the way for the cultivation of spring food crops. The FAO ERCU in Georgia is presently implementing an emergency and rehabilitation programme with an overall budget of US$8 million for ongoing projects to help restore food and livelihood security. United States Agency For International Development, EC and the Government of Italy fund these projects. 

National Medium Term Priority Frame Work (NMTPF)
The NMTPF formulation initiated in 2009, with an inception mission that took place in May and an NMPTF workshop was held in August to identify project proposals to be included into the framework that are within the priority areas of FAO-government collaboration as identified during the inception mission.

last updated: 7 July 2011