Advancing gender-responsive budgeting in Georgia with EU support

Georgian government institutions have taken another strong step towards implementing gender-responsive budgeting, with the support of training organised by the EU-funded EU4Gender Equality Reform Helpdesk with the Georgian Parliamentary Budget Office.

A gender-responsive budget is a budget that works for everyone – women and men, girls and boys, in all their diversity – by ensuring the gender-equitable distribution of resources and equal opportunities for all. Gender-responsive budgeting (GRB) is the governance tool used to analyse and restructure budgets so that diverse needs are fairly represented in budget items. In essence, GRB means mainstreaming gender in budget processes – making is a vital part of advancing gender equality.

Training sessions on gender-responsive budgeting (27–28 and 30–31 March 2023) strengthened the capacities of 51 participants from the Parliamentary Budget Office, the Gender Equality Council of the Parliament of Georgia, the Administration of the Government of Georgia, the Public Defender’s Office and a range of the Ministries directly engaged in policy and decision-making, including gender focal points. Participants learned about international practice and achievements in Georgia, and explored how to overcome the challenges of introducing gender-responsive budgets in the country. Shorena Kakhidze, Head of the Parliamentary Budget Office, praised the training as a valuable opportunity for state officials to gain knowledge and foster greater cooperation to implement gender-responsive budgeting in Georgia – a process in which the Office will continue to be actively engaged.

This training was part and parcel of ongoing support for Georgia by the EU4GenderEquality Reform Helpdesk project, funded by the European Union and implemented by Niras. The Reform Helpdesk aims to ensure effective and equal results for women and men across Eastern Partnership countries – including Georgia – by expanding the use of gender analysis in decision-making and reforms. The training sessions were delivered by international expert Dr Elisabeth Klatzer on the Helpdesk’s behalf.

Learn more about EU support for gender equality

EU4GenderEquality Reform Helpdesk

EU4 Gender Equality Reform Helpdesk – Factsheet

EU4 Gender Equality Reform Helpdesk – Factsheet on the Reform Helpdesk’s support (2021–2022) for GeorgiaEU5Gender Equality Reform Helpdesk – Gender Equality Library