On December 3, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Georgia Country Office organized an awareness raising meeting in Akhaltsikhe on the importance of involving radiologists, obstetricians, gynecologists, family doctors and reproductive specialists in the prevention of gender-biased sex selection.

Gender-biased sex selection favouring boys reveals social, cultural, political, and economic inequalities, and deeply entrenched gender equality, which continue to discriminate women and girls. 

Studies confirm that medical staff are often unaware of the existence of this harmful practices, which contributes to the prevalence of gender-biased sex selection. Therefore, working with medical professionals, conducting discussions, exchanging ideas and disseminating information on issues related to the problem is essential. Awareness meetings will help increase gender sensitivity among the medical community, raise their awareness of the existence of harmful practices of Son Preference and gender-biased sex selection in the country.

The meeting aimed to raise public awareness on harmful practices like son preference and undervaluing of girls, gender inequality, gender-biased sex selection and skewed sex ratio at birth in Georgia; as well as to provide recommendations and advice to members of the medical community on the ethical use of technologies for identifying fetal sex and the timing of disclosure of the sex of the fetus to the parents. 

The meeting was held within the framework of the “Addressing Gender-Biased Sex Selection and Related Harmful Practices in the South Caucasus” programme, funded by the European Union, implemented by UNFPA.