Client: The Council of Europe Office in Georgia
Funded by: The Council of Europe
Start: March 2019
End: May 2019
Country: Georgia
In the project entitled Support to the Judicial Reform in Georgia, the Council of Europe aimed to support Georgia in implementing a strategy for court system reform and to enhance the functioning of Georgia’s court system in compliance with Council of Europe standards in terms of independence, transparency, accountability, and efficiency. The project entailed the provision of support to enhance gender sensitivity in courts, inter alia, by identifying reasons for the under-representation of women in managerial positions, along with analyzing the involvement of women in administrative decision-making process.
The ACT team assessed the main factors contributing to the under-representation of women among judges in Georgia. Within the study, attitudes towards the criteria and procedures for appointing court/panel/chamber chairpersons in the court system, as well as the contrasting opportunities for men and women to succeed therein, were assessed. Moreover, key factors hindering women judges from gaining promotions and potential measures to support the appointment of more women judges in the court system were also identified.
As a result of the assessment, recommendations were issued, including on how to address the issues identified and the most suitable measures to be taken to enhance gender sensitivity in the courts of Georgia. The assessment results could be used by the Council of Europe Office of Georgia to implement activities in line with human rights, such as the integration of gender issues and the rights of minorities in the court reform process, as well as to issue its own recommendations on how to take those rights into account.
Client: ECORYS
Funded by: The European Union
Start: January 2016
End: September 2020
Countries: Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova
The ‘EU NEIGHBOURS east’ project aims to increase the understanding within Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries about EU support, through improved communication. The overall objective of the project is to improve public perceptions of the EU, as well as to ensure a better comprehension of European policies and their impacts, particularly with respect to the regional and bilateral EU support and cooperation programs in the EaP countries.
The ACT team assists the ‘EU NEIGHBOURS east’ project by gathering opinions and gauging the level of information that citizens of EaP countries have obtained about the EU in general and about EU-funded cooperation and development programs/projects specifically. Since 2016, we have been working in the six EaP countries to trace program intervention outcomes in each country year-on-year.
The project has developed information and communication materials, has entailed the carrying out awareness-raising and information campaigns, and has assessed the perceptions of the EU and the support it provides through opinion polling and media monitoring.
Client: MCA-Georgia
Funded by: MCA-Georgia
Start: December 2017
End: November 2018
Country: Georgia
On 26 July 2013, the Government of Georgia (GOG) and the United States of America, acting through the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), signed a Compact Agreement for a US$140 million grant to alleviate poverty and boost economic growth, employing the MCC’s assistance to strengthen good governance, economic freedom, and investments in Georgia. The five-year Compact entered into force on 1 July 2014. The objective of the Georgia II Compact is to support strategic investments in the Program, which consists of three Projects: (1) Improving General Education Quality (IGEQ); (2) Industry-led Skills and Workforce Development (ISWD); and (3) Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). These projects respond to constraints affecting economic growth and aim to improve the poor quality of human capital in Georgia.
The Monitoring and Evaluation Unit (M&E Unit), established within the MCA-Georgia, is implementing a Monitoring and Evaluation Plan (M&E Plan) developed by the MCA-Georgia in collaboration with the MCC to conduct program performance monitoring and evaluations. Accordingly, the MCA-Georgia regularly updates the M&E Plan in which data quality reviews represent a critical component.
The ACT team verified the consistency and quality of data among the Program’s implementing agencies and other reporting institutions. The data reviewed included administrative data collected and reported by government entities and consulting firms contracted by the MCA-Georgia.
ACT conducted a quality review of the data generated by the MCA-Georgia, the GoG, and the MCA-Georgia’s consultants against data quality standards and criteria set out in the M&E Plan. The review covered two main aspects: indicators and baseline data used to develop program logic which are included in the MCA-Georgia’s indicator-tracking tables (monitoring indicators only); and verification of the data on school conditions and cost assessment.
Client: The United Nations Development Program (UNDP)
Funded by: European Neighborhood Program for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD)
Start: November 2016
End: October 2018
Country: Georgia
As part of its Rural Community Capacity Building Program, the UNDP supports rural citizens, and particularly AMAGs, to diversify their activities and switch from engaging in purely agriculture-focused activities to embrace some other activities that boost the rural economy in general.
The overall objective of the Project was to build community capacity and to enable individuals, groups and community activists in rural areas of Adjara to develop the confidence, understanding, and skills required to influence rural policy dialogue, and decision-making through established AMAGs. This was to include: enabling communities to provide and manage local actions to meet rural needs; and enabling communities to have a real influence in the planning, delivery, and quality of mainstream municipal services related to rural development, as well as specific initiatives such as those aimed at achieving six priority goals for the integrated rural development of Adjara.
The ACT team elaborated and delivered an interactive training program for members of AMAGs across Adjara, and, based on an open competition, then developed business plans regarding the initiation of local economic activities.
189 representatives of AMAGs were trained in:
The ACT team comprising business developers assisted individuals or groups of individuals representing AMAGs to devise business plans. Some of the initiatives were funded by the UNDP, and the AMAGs are still being supported in an effort to ensure sustainable rural development.