Equitable Empowerment in Georgia, an event celebrating community responses to equitable local government initiatives empowering women and men in communities of three regions of Georgia, will be held at Hualing Hotel in Tbilisi on the 17th of March, under the patronage of the Gender Equality Council of the Parliament of Georgia.
Please see the event website www.eeg.ge.
Up to 500 delegates - National, Regional and Local Government decision-makers, Women's Rooms managers and villages representatives, civil society and private sector and the women and men of the communities themselves - will present their motivations, methods and achievements. Likeminded people from the worlds of sport, culture, business and entertainment who seek to enrich the lives of women and men and boys and girls in Georgia in their work will speak and share their view about why this matters. Showcase stands from communities, enterprises, private sector, media and civil society will add colour and interest framed by the photographs of the municipal photo competition.
The event has been facilitated through the Alliances Lesser Caucasus Programme funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and implemented by Mercy Corps Georgia.
Armenians have been living in Kvemo Kartli for centuries. According to the 2002 census 31,777 out of 497,530 Kvemo Kartli residents were Armenians. The number of Armenians is highest in Tsalka where 11,484 Armenians live, out of a total population of 20977. The advent of Armenians in Georgia was related to the movement of people during the Arab, Turk-Seljuk, Mongolian, Turkmen, Kizilbash, Ottoman Turk and other invasions. Several major settlements of Armenians took place in 1828-1829, during the Russian-Turkish war
Azerbaijanis living in Kvemo Kartli are Turkic-speaking people representing the legacy of the conquerors that came to this area at different times. in the 1926 Census they were referred to as Azerbaijanis. The Azeri population that settled in Kartli is comprised of two streams of migrants: 1. The Turkish-speaking population that was resettled between 15th-18th centuries; they went through the heaviest psychological and physical stress before they adapted to the new place. 2. Migrants who moved from one place to another to improve living conditions having adapted to the new environment. Currently the Azeri population in Georgia numbers 224,606. They mainly reside in Bolnisi, Dmanisi, Gardabani and Marneuli districts, mostly in district centers apart from in Dmanisi muniiciaplity where there are many Azeri villages. Some live in Tetritskaro and Tsalka districts.
In 1980’s the planned settlement of a large groups of eco-migrant Ajarians and Svanetians started in Tetritskaro and Tsalka municipalities. There were several streams of eco-migration up to 2003. The advent of these incomers has left its mark on Kvemo Kartli. It became richer from an ethnic, religious and language standpoint, however it also gave rise to new problems and challenges for new and old residents alike in seeking to adapt to the new cultural diversity.
The first settlement of Svans into Kvemo Kartli took place in 1987. This is when the Svans from landslide-affected Chviberi (higher Svaneti) were resettled in Dmanisi, in the houses built under a government programme. Svans started to introduce their style of life in Kvemo Kartli and establish strong communities in Kvemo Kartli.
In 2011 Alliances KK facilitated establishment of DRR Municipal Working Groups in Dmanisi, Tsalka and Tetritskaro municipalities. These groups remain to be the main point for planning and implementing of prevention measures to reduce livestock related disaster risks.
