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Special Projects

USAID programs require special sub-activities in order to maximize our strategy in Georgia. These activities are provided by our partners in the areas of short-term academic and practical training, internships, institutional human resource assessment and analysis, small grant-making to local non-governmental organizations, regional cooperation among the three Caucasus countries of Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan, program development and evaluation, and support costs.

Build Civil Society and Private Enterprises

The private, grant-making organization Eurasia Foundation (www.eurasia.org) awards small grants to increase civic awareness and participation among youth, promote transparency and accountability, reform municipal public administration and policy, and fund public awareness campaigns. Its South Caucasus Cooperation program supports the region's emerging think tanks to provide policy recommendations to their respective governments. For more information: http://www.eurasia.org/

Enhance Local Skills

Enhancing Local Skills: USAID funds training and education programs for Georgian professionals, officials, and non-governmental and business leaders.  This man is participating in a seminar on food safety standards.

Helping our local partners improve their employees’ skills and management ability enables them to better contribute to Georgia's development efforts and USAID's long-term impact.

To this end, our U.S.-based partner World Learning (www.worldlearning.org) conducts trainings and education programs for Georgian professionals, officials, and non-governmental and business leaders. In 2005, 989 Georgians participated in 51 different training programs in the areas of democracy and governance, energy and environment, social transition, health, and economic growth.  Women accounted for 49% of all trainees.  After the trainings, participants developed action plans to ensure that new ideas and knowledge were used and shared with colleagues.

Providing professional training: Exchange programs for Georgian professionals: An arts and crafts management group from Georgia meets with the administration of Columbia College in Chicago

USAID partner Project Harmony, Inc. (www.projectharmony.org) carries out the Community Connections program (www.ccgeorgia.ge), which offers unique three- to five-week practical training and internship opportunities in the U.S. for entrepreneurs, small and medium business representatives, local government officials, legal professionals, NGO leaders, art managers, educators, and other Georgian professionals. The program combines seminars, workshops, site visits, meetings with American professionals, and hands-on practical internships with a home-stay in American families. Community Connections provides participants with professional training and exposure to the day-to-day functioning of a free market system, encourages public-private partnerships in Eurasia by including both private and public sector participants on U.S. visits, and creates links between U.S. and Georgian regions and communities.

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