Georgian National Tourism Administration and USAID/Zrda will Launch the Destination Management Organization in Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region! USAID Zrda Chief of Party Brian King and Head of Georgian National Tourism Administration (GNTA) Giorgi Chogovadze joined the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Deputy Governor Nino Vibliani and the Mayors of the regional municipalities to announce intention to launch the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Destination Management Organization (DMO) designed to position and market the region as one of Georgia’s premier tourism destinations.

BP Georgia and USAID Zrda Activity to Support Communities across Georgia! On November 16, 2018, Deputy Chief of Mission Elizabeth Rood and BP Country Manager for Georgia Chris Schlueter joined Samtskhe-Javakheti Governor Besik Amiranashvili to familiarize with the opportunities of economic and social growth in Zemo Skhvilisi village of the Akhlatsikhe Municipality.

Recently, USAID Zrda in partnership with BP Georgia has launched joint program in 41 villages where BP and Zrda activities overlap, including village Zemo Skhvilisi. Joint program will be implemented as part of the wider Community Development Initiative program, initiated and funded by BP and its oil and gas partners.  Focus areas of the partnership are agriculture, business and community development.

On October 2, 2018, USAID Zrda Chief of Party Brian King and Governor of Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Alexandre Motserelia joined USAID/Georgia representative David Tsiklauri and Acting Deputy Head of Georgian National Tourism Administration (GNTA) Tornike Zirakishvili to launch the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Regional Tourism Development Symposium. The symposium aims to identify challenges facing the regional tourism industry and set priorities to better position and market this region as one of Georgia’s premier tourism destinations. 

The Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Tourism Development Symposium is the first initiative of the regional tourism stakeholders working group to be registered as a Destination Management Organization (DMO) this year. Earlier last year, USAID Zrda partnered with GNTA, and regional public and private sector stakehold­ers to establish the regional tourism working group aimed at promoting a well-tested regional tourism development model in Samegrelo and Samtskhe-Javakheti regions. The model focuses on agro-, eco-, adventure-, and cultural tourism, and seeks to improve stakeholder coordination and cooperation in the region.

 Zrda’s holistic approach to tourism seeks to support regional tourism development through new tourism product development, promoting new tourism destinations and attractions, and raising international quality standards within players in the tourism sector. As a result of Zrda interventions to-date, 415 guesthouses and restaurants across its target ABL and minority regions, including 207 from Samegrelo, have benefited from both digital marketing training and American Hotel and Lodging Association Education Institute (AHLAEI) certificate training courses on hotel administration, and are now registered on well-known booking engines like Booking.com, TripAdvisor and Airbnb.  Thanks to the Zrda-supported Information and Media Tours to Samegrelo, Samtskhe-Javakheti, Kvemo Kartli and Tusheti, the leading Georgian tour operators have recently included the newly discovered sites into their touristic packages and generated up to $700,000 in sales in just several months following the activity. The initiative also assisted local actors to generate more income, and upgrade their services to meet international standards, all aiming to support increased employment in the hospitality sector of the regions.

In line with its adventure tourism development initiatives, Zrda facilitated preparation of 60 wilderness guides and instructors in canyoning, rafting, hiking, trekking and diving, all catering to the variety of experience levels. As a complementary activity, Zrda in partnership with GNTA supported the positioning of 38 e-maps of hiking trails in Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region on www.wikiloc.com- search engine popular worldwide among adventure lovers.

On September 10, 2018, Anaklia Development Consortium’s (ADC) CEO Levan Akhvlediani and USAID Zrda’s Chief of Party, Brian King signed a Partnership Agreement within the Anaklia Community and Economic Development Program. According to the agreement, ADC and USAID Zrda invest $2 million to promote the regional economic development of Anaklia/ Zugdidi and its surrounding areas. USAID Mission Director Peter Wiebler, ADC Founding Partner Mamuka Khazaradze, Governor of Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Aleksandre Motserelia, and other public and private sector representatives attended the signing ceremony. 

The new project will focus on 3 major directions: Increasing the competitiveness and growth of MSMEs in the region; Building a workforce qualified to meet the market demand for both port operations and the wider economy in the region; Facilitating the development of community infrastructure necessary to meet Anaklia and the region’s needs. USAID Zrda and Anaklia Development Consortium are investing $1 million each in the joint project.

According to USAID Mission Director Peter Wiebler, “This partnership symbolizes the U.S. government’s commitment to building self-reliant communities across Georgia. It also represents our intent to engage with the private sector to achieve our shared goals. We are excited to work with Georgian and U.S. private partners as visionary and ambitious as the members of the Anaklia Development Consortium. While international donors and government help set the foundation for economic growth, the collaboration and commitment of private sector actors make such growth durable and sustainable.” 

According to ADC Founding Partner Mamuka Khazaradze, “Wellbeing and prosperity of the people of Anaklia and surrounding areas has been among our most important goals since the very beginning of the Anaklia Port project.  We are happy that this purpose will now be realised with this new, very significant project that we commence in partnership with USAID Zrda. I want to express my gratitude towards USAID and the U.S. Government for being the part of this important initiative, and overall, for their expressed support in development of Anaklia and the Anaklia Deep Sea Port.”

Anaklia Community and Economic Development Program will provide support to communities in West Georgia to maximize their ability to capitalize on the coming economic development opportunities presented by the $2.5 billion Anaklia Deep Sea Port mega project, which is a joint venture of a Georgian-U.S. consortium. The new deep-water port is envisioned to transform Georgia into a regional economic hub and a key link and transport corridor between Aisa and Europe. Construction of Georgia’s first deep sea port started in December 2017, and the first phase of the project - construction of the primary container terminal - will be completed by the end of 2020, which also coincides with the timeline of the joint development program between USAID Zrda and ADC. 

USAID/Zrda, Georgian National Tourism Administration and Samegrelo-Zemo-Svaneti regional administration held a meeting with Georgian journalists within a media tour “Discover More in Samegrelo region” designed to develop new tourism destinations, attract more visitors and promote Samegrelo’s wealthy heritage.

USAID Zrda, in partnership with Georgian Farmers’ Association (GFA) and the Ministry of Environment Protection and Agriculture, supports the development of crop-specific local GAP standards for Georgia.

Chargé d’Affaires Elizabeth Rood visited, Phoka Nunnery of St. Nino. Vardzia Terraces vineyards and Amphora Brewery in Samtskhe-Javakheti region. To increase awareness of Phoka Nunnery of St. Nino, Vardzia Terraces and Amphora Brewery as tourism destinations in Samtskhe-Javakheti, USAID Zrda program included these sites in the information tour for 16 leading Georgian tour operators.

Seven new Berry Nursery Production/Plant Management and Demonstration Plots to be launched in four different regions in Georgia, including Samegrelo, Kvemo Kartli, Samtskhe-Javakheti and Kakheti (Akhmeta). Farmers have already received high-quality plants from certified U.S, suppliers. 17,500 plants are produced in tissue culture laboratories at Hartmann's Plant Company and Nourse Farm, where they maintain disease free plants with the new state of propagation facilities.

In Zugdidi, Anaklia and Tsaishi, Samegrelo region Assistant Administrator for USAID’s Bureau for Europe and Eurasia Brock Bierman visited USAID Zrda Activity in Georgia beneficiaries. In Zugdidi Brock Bierman learned Mengrelian cooking techniques at Café El Barco that has “excellent’’ travelers’ rating with TripAdvisor. Cafe owners embraced the opportunity provided by the joint Zrda/CHCA no-interest loan program to equip it with nice furniture and modern kitchen appliances.

On February 5, 2018, USAID/Georgia Economic Growth Office Director Veronica Lee joined Akhmeta Municipality Head Ioseb Karumashvili, to meet with local communities and launch a Small Grants Program, initiated by USAID’s Zrda Activity. The Small Grants program is designed for nine target communities of the Akhmeta municipality (city Akhmeta, Kvemo Alvani, Zemo Alvani, Matani, Sakobiano, Duisi, Jokolo, Khalatsani and Omalo) to support business development through small grants assistance to micro and small enterprises. Within the Program, Zrda plans to award up to 60 grants for agriculture and tourism development activities in target communities. At least 35% of total project value is requested as a leverage from an entrepreneur.

“Adventure tourism potential and opportunities for development, barriers to growth and the ways to eliminate them,”- these were the issues on the agenda for the USAID Zrda-hosted meeting of adventure tourism stakeholders. The industry players provided further insights into the opportunities of the adventure travel market as a significant, valuable, and growing niche for the regions of Samtskhe-Javakheti and Samegrelo in terms of attracting more tourists and increasing sales. 

Within global entrepreneurship week, US Ambassador Ian C. Kelly visits the Duisi community center to meet with the entrepreneurs and farmers operating in the region, an overwhelming majority of them being the Zrda beneficiaries. The Ambassador met with local vegetable greenhouse farmers, guesthouse owners, beekeepers, small grants program beneficiaries and young entrepreneurs from local communities.