The FINANCIAL — Minister of Internally Displaced Persons from the Occupied Territories, Labor, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia, Ekaterine Tikaradze conducted a working meeting with the representatives of UNICEF. UNICEF presented to the Ministry the results of the recently conducted research. The goal of the research is to assess the readiness of social system amid COVID-19 and its impact on the poverty rate. Also, representatives of municipalities of Georgia will participate in on-line training sessions on the Rights of the Child and one of the developers of this programme was UNICEF.
Minister, Ekaterine Tikarade and UNICEF Representative in Georgia, Ghassan Khalil, reflected on the importance and methodology of the research. The parties discussed the conclusions and trends and concrete measures to be taken for overcoming revealed challenges.
The UNICEF presented to the representatives of the Ministry the information on a new project on School Food, which will be piloted starting from September, 2021. Ekaterine Tikaradze positively assessed the new project and its importance and highlighted the close cooperation in this regard. Deputy Minister, Tamar Barkalaia and other representatives of the Ministry attended the presentation on the conclusions of the research.
Ghassan Khalil was appointed Representative of UNICEF in Georgia in October of 2018. Dr. Khalil’s work has been focused on promoting human rights, women and children’s rights, social policy, legal reform, cultural diversity and intercultural dialogue, with extensive experience in strategic management and rights-based approach to programming, in both development and emergency settings.
Earlier this year, Ektarine Tikaradze had another meeting with UNICEF Representatives. The participants of the meeting discussed joint project. The special emphasis was placed to the issue of child poverty, improvement of the evaluation methodology for socially vulnerable population. The representatives of UNICEF positively assessed the reform for strengthening of primary healthcare units initiated by the Ministry.
Also, in July of 2019, Ms. Tikaradze met with the Head of UNICEF in Georgia, Mr. Ghassan Khalil. The meeting participants discussed the important topics of children’s rights and their social well-being. The special attention has been given to targeted social assistance to the children which has been increased by five times since last year. The Minister stated the robust monitoring of targeting the assistance allotted by the State directly to the needs of the children by the families should be performed. As noted by Dr. Ghassan Khalil the afore-mentioned represents a significant challenge worldwide.
Yesterday, it was announced that, over 190 representatives of municipalities of Georgia will participate in on-line training sessions on the implementation of Georgia’s new Code on the Rights of the Child. A special event was organized at the parliament with participation of Ms. Sopio Kiladze, the Chair of the Committee of Human Rights and Civil Integration, Mr. Adam Schmidt, Director of USAID/Georgia’s Democracy, Governance & Social Development Office, and Dr. Ghassan Khalil, UNICEF Representative in Georgia to discuss the trainings and the role of municipalities in the implementation of the Code. The municipality representatives joined the meeting online.
“The training programme ensures that all municipal workers engaged in the protection of children have relevant knowledge, skills and operate in the frame of well-functioning administrative processes.” – Ghassan Khalil
The training programme was jointly developed by the Committee of Human Rights and Civil Integration, the Georgian Association of Social Workers, and UNICEF, with financial support from USAID. The training sessions will support various professionals, including municipal workers, social workers, and judges in implementing the Code – which will enter into force in September 2020.
Last week, Ekaterine Tikaradze attended the opening of the Ken Walker University Clinic for Medical Rehabilitation. The Clinic is a public-private partnership, facilitated by Emory University, USAID’s implementing partner in its Physical Rehabilitation Program. Training, capacity building, and continuous supervision of the rehabilitation specialists are being provided by USAID’s Physical Rehabilitation Program.
EU and WHO delivered 15 tons of COVID-19 supplies in Georgia
