Regional journalists advocating for women’s economic empowerment

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To support in-depth coverage of women’s issues and involve journalists in the advocacy of gender-related topics, UN Women has been intensively cooperating with local media representatives.

Tamar Sheitnishvili, UN Women project beneficiary, the co-founder of the Georgian apple-chip company Enkeni, introduced her brand to the journalists
Tamar Sheitnishvili, UN Women project beneficiary, the co-founder of the Georgian apple-chip company Enkeni, introduced her brand to the journalists; Photo: UN Women

Within the scope of this cooperation, UN Women organizes information meetings and trainings for journalists to familiarize them with the activities of UN Women and its partners and to enhance their knowledge about women’s issues and gender-sensitive reporting.

One such training on the topic of women’s economic empowerment was held for regional journalists on 24 and 25 June 2019. The training was attended by 17 leading journalists from seven regions across the country.

Regarding issues of gender and the economy, UN Women’s project analyst Nani Bendeliani spoke to the training participants about the awareness-raising approaches implemented by UN Women and the nationalized indicators established by the Government, including the current situation in Georgia. The former president of the National Bank of Georgia, Giorgi Kadagidze, focused on the role of women in the economic development of the country.

Training participant Kamila Mamedova, the director of Marneuli Community Radio, remarked: “When the very significant work and role of women is expressed in numbers, one starts analysing the issue from an absolutely different perspective. Journalists must be well versed in this topic and must understand the importance of media in raising awareness within society as well as among women themselves in terms of the valuable role that women play in the country’s economic development. Journalists must show that living standards may be improved if women and men join forces in equal measure.”

Representatives of regional media discussed the peculiarities of reporting on issues related to women’s economic empowerment. In the final part of the training, Tamar Sheitnishvili, UN Women project beneficiary, the co-founder of the Georgian apple-chip company Enkeni, introduced her brand to the participants and recounted the history of establishing the enterprise.

The training for the regional media was conducted within the framework of the projects “A Joint Action for Women's Economic Empowerment in Georgia” and “Women’s Economic Empowerment in the South Caucasus” with the financial assistance of the Government of Norway, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and the Austrian Development Agency.