Georgian women process native chestnuts. Export channels have increased due to USAID and ACDI/VOCA agribusiness assistance. (Photo USAID)
A more bountiful harvest results from farm production training delivered through the AgVANTAGE program. (Photo USAID)
Local AgVANTAGE-assisted women harvest greens for export. (Photo USAID)
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USAID supports the development of micro, small, and medium enterprises through increased access to credit, including a rural credit system servicing agricultural producers, processors, and other commercial enterprises. Financial institutions receiving USAID support serve over 27,000 active borrowers, and throughout the Mission's tenure in Georgia, over 243,000 loans have been disbursed, totaling more than $62 million. Approximately 70 percent of all microfinance clients are women.
Economic Growth through Micro-Finance for WomenSince receiving initial support from USAID in 1997, the Constanta Foundation has grown into a leading microfinance institution, serving over 16,000 clients in 15 locations across Georgia. In May 2002, as a result of a unique public-private partnership between USAID and the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline consortium, the Foundation opened a branch office in Akhaltsikhe, one of the main cities along the pipeline route. The office provided shoemakers, hairdressers, bakers, traders, and other small business managers their first real chance to take out loans to improve their businesses. Seventy-one percent of the Foundation's clients are women, and 21 percent are internally displaced persons (IDPs). Constanta's group-lending approach enables small groups of individual entrepreneurs to guarantee each other's loans, bypassing the need for collateral. The approach has proven very successful, and with a repayment rate of more than 98 percent nationwide, the Foundation now fully covers its operating expenses.
Agribusiness DevelopmentThe Agribusiness Development project integrates gender at multiple levels, including ensuring women's access to microfinance assistance. At USAID-supported microfinance institutions (MFIs), women constitute 65 percent of borrowers. In addition, job creation in agribusiness and other sectors is closely monitored to ensure gender equity.
AgVANTAGE ProgramThrough the AgVANTAGE program, USAID and ACDI/VOCA assist agribusinesses by repairing fractured market chains. AgVANTAGE also provides training sessions on topics ranging from farm production practices to marketing and supports the organization of study tours for representatives of the agricultural sector. Approximately 20 percent of the training participants are women.
Strategic Assistance for Results with Training (START)Initiated by USAID and World Learning in 2002, START provides institutional analysis and alumni support for conducting "needs assessment" reviews of four energy regulatory agencies. A total of 953 women have attended START training programs, which focus on issues such as humanitarian assistance, social transition, economic growth, democracy and governance, and energy and environmental protection. As part of these training programs, women developed action plans demonstrating their commitment to implementing new ideas and sharing knowledge. The increase in training programs also has provided local trainers with the opportunity to improve their training skills. The project has been extended to 2006.
Georgia's Program Objectives
Political Participation
Legal Rights
Economic Growth
Health
Trafficking SELECTED ACTIVITIES:
Future Women Leaders
Gender Mobilizers' Groups
Women, Democracy & Governance
Legal Rights for Women
Economic Growth through Micro-Finance for Women
Agribusiness Development
AgVANTAGE Program
Strategic Assistance for Results with Training
(START)
Health Centers
Anti-trafficking Assistance Programs
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Global Snapshots: Georgia
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