Addressing Gender-Biased Sex Selection and Related Harmful Practices in the South Caucasus” - the programme challenging social norms in Georgia 

Preventing harmful practices, promoting the creation of equal opportunities for girls and boys, informing adolescents and young people - this is an incomplete list of issues currently being addressed by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Samtskhe-Javakheti, through working with young people and for young people, within the framework of the “Addressing Gender-Biased Sex Selection and Related Harmful Practices in the South Caucasus” programme. 

According to the statistical data of 2019, young people aged 15-29 constitute 18.5% of the total population of Georgia. 40% of them live in rural areas and hard-to-reach settlements. One of the main goals set by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) within the framework of the programme is to support the adolescents who strive to make changes in their communities, fight against deeply rooted stereotypes and actively participate in public life.

UNFPA Georgia Country Office employs innovative ways to work with ethnic Georgian, Armenian and Azerbaijani youth to break down the social norms which make it harder for young people to develop the vision of their own and to thrive as they seek to change the stereotypes surrounding them, shatter myths and create a harmonious, fairer and more egalitarian society. 

Samtskhe-Javakheti,where the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) implements the programme “Addressing Gender-Biased Sex Selection and Related Harmful Practices in the South Caucasus”, with the support of the European Union, is one of the important regions in this regard.

The programme aims to prevent and eliminate the harmful practice of gender-biased sex selection and son preference, therefore, innovative initiatives implemented within the frames of the programme are related to this issue. 

Youth for Social Change 

Alisa Gimishyan lives in the Samtskhe-Javakheti region. She believes that “changes start with us; and if we want to live in a better environment and in a society where everyone has equal opportunities, then we are the ones who [have to] take the first step.”

In order to empower and enable young people living in the region to make informed decisions and contribute to the achievement of real gender equality, UNFPA, together with local partners, is implementing “Youth for Social Change” initiative. Alisa is a participant of this initiative.

The UNFPA initiative, with the support of the Network of Centres for Civic Engagement (NCCE), brings together young people who believe in equality, fight against harmful social norms and are not afraid of obstacles on their way to tangible changes. In order to achieve the abovementioned, young people strive to broaden their knowledge, improve their skills, share ideas with each other and become initiators in their own communities.

In 2022, the youth of Akhaltsikhe won the contest of ideas announced by the UNFPA and The Body Shop, which aimed to encourage the elimination of gender stereotypes. Cooperation with the private sector is yet another encouraging factor for young people living in the region to advocate for important and topical issues.

Participants of the initiative believe that women and men should enjoy equal opportunities in their pursuit of education and jobs, share household chores equally, and enjoy equal freedom of choice. 

For example, Gvantsa Samsonadze considers that the lack of involvement of fathers in the process of child-rearing is a challenge in the region:  

When talking about gender equality, we often encounter cases when gender equality is not properly or adequately understood. It will be better if we begin educating children and informing them about equality-related issues from an early age, because inequality starts from early years,” she says.

Bilingual online platform “Gandzi”

Based on the principles of equality, solidarity and tolerance, the Georgian-Armenian language online platform “Gandzi” (Treasure) promotes awareness raising and the development of critical thinking among young people representing the ethnic minority. 

The online platform was established in 2021 as a result of partnership between the UNFPA Georgia CO and the NGO “Sapari”.

Gandzi” is an excellent project. It is one of the important platforms functioning in the region, and young people enjoy participating in it. Perhaps, this is due to the fact that some students involved in this project are successful and serve as role models for others. I think it helps when they think: if this person can do it, I can do it too,” says 20-year-old Zhanna Chogandaryan from the village of Kvlikami in Akhalkalaki, who has been working for the Georgian-Armenian online platform “Gandzi” for a year now. 

Zhanna, like other bloggers of the platform, covers topical issues that concern her region. This has been the purpose of this platform. “Gandzi” aims to provide the Armenian-speaking population of Georgia, especially young people, with information related to human rights, gender equality, harmful practices, reproductive health and rights, and other topics important to young people, in Georgian and Armenian languages.

For her, personally, the issue of early marriage remains an unsolved challenge in the region, and it is the topic she currently works on while participating in the platform “Treasure”.

Bride kidnapping is the biggest problem in my village. I even heard some saying: you’d better shoot this film so that you wouldn't be kidnapped too,” says Zhanna, whose sister was kidnapped at the age of 17. 

My sister wanted to become a pharmacist, but after [she was kidnaped] she gave up on her dreams. She is a housewife now,” she says. 

Zhanna, like other bloggers of the platform, believes that young people have a special power to change the harmful practices deep-rooted in their communities and to do it together with other young people and for each other.

Comic book “Invisible”

From the moment I read the first page of it, I had an impression that Nini was a friend of mine. Nini might be an embodiment of me, or rather of all the teenagers I meet on the street,” - says 16-year-old Natalia Chitiashvili when asked about this age-appropriate and culturally sensitive comic book - “Invisible”. 

In order to drive real change, the UNFPA, together with its partners, strives to develop products that inspire girls and boys from an early age and make them realize that they are unique, that they have the strength and ability to overcome stereotypes, break down myths and seek harmony in equality. 

The comic book created in 2022, at the initiative of the UNFPA Georgia CO, in cooperation with the publishing house “Palitra L” and with the support of the European Union, serves this very purpose.

The authors of the comic book - Marta Urushadze, Tatia Nadareishvili and Mikheil Tsikhelashvili, created a story about a girl who is not afraid of difficulties and is trying to change the unequal environment for the better, with seemingly small and insignificant steps. This story will once again convince us that there is no obstacle in the world that friendship, love and justice cannot overcome.

The comic book “Invisible” is full of hidden messages that teenagers rarely find in books, and the topics it covers are the ones that should be discussed publicly as much as possible,” says Natalia, who was among the first readers of the comic book.

In her opinion, the main character of the comic book, 14-year-old Nini, “is an embodiment of all those teenage girls who start to establish themselves in a society or embark on the way to self-realization.” 

The comic book is part of the campaign “Do not differentiate: a girl and a boy are both your future!”, through which the UNFPA reminds everyone that both girls and boys are equally valuable and precious to their families, communities and countries.