Up to 45 representativesfrom the government, international and non-governmental sectors participated in an online project launch event. “Achieving Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) Targets of Georgia through Restoration and Sustainable Management of Degraded Pasturelands” in a titleof a two-year project, which intends to support the national efforts of Georgia in implementing the LDN targets through restoration and sustainable management of the degraded pasturelands.

During the inception workshop, stakeholders and implementing partners were introduced the methodologies and approaches, work-plan and major milestones foreseen in the project. Within a two-year span, it is planned to strengthen policy documents and institutional frameworks to achieve a neutral balance of land degradation, with the main focus on introducing the principles of sustainable land management on pastures. It is envisaged to strengthen national and local stakeholders’ capacity to implement sustainable pastureland management practices. The use of sustainable land management practices on degraded pastures in the local population with the help of coordination mechanisms and exchange of knowledge is also planned.

Some of the key achievements, as a result of project implementation are to:

• Develop a national legal framework for Sustainable Pastureland Management.
• Have Pasture Management Plans (strategic and operational) for total of 20 000 ha state-owned pasturelands, developed in participatory manner and implemented in Gurjaani, Dmanisi and Kazbegi municipalities.
• Implement sustainable participatory Pasture Management Practices on total of 747 ha pastureland, including grazing management, weed control, breeding program with local stock, fertilization, terracing, gully prevention, mobile livestock water points, water harvesting, mobile fencing, mobile shade structures, etc.
• Capacity building of up to 200 farmers and government representatives in sustainable pastureland management.

The project is initiated by the Ministry Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia (MEPA) and funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF). It is implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and executed by the Regional Environmental Center for the Caucasus (REC Caucasus). The project partner is the Caucasus Environmental NGO Network (CENN).