Enabling Implementation of Forest Sector Reform in Georgia to Reduce GHG Emissions From Forest Degradation

The report assesses gender inequalities in Georgia, specifically within the forestry and energy sectors, to inform a Green Climate Fund project. It identifies significant disparities in decision-making, asset ownership, and labor, noting that while men dominate forest management and commercial wood extraction, women are the primary managers of household fuel consumption and are more vulnerable to poverty and time poverty. The document proposes targeted interventions, including strengthening gender competencies in partner institutions, ensuring women's participation in sustainable forest management plans, and improving access to financing for energy-efficient stoves for women-led households.

• Georgia ranks low on international gender equality indices; in 2017, it was ranked 78 among 160 countries in the UNDP Gender Inequality Index, and in 2018, it ranked 99 among 149 countries in the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Index.
• Women are significantly underrepresented in Georgian political and executive leadership. Only 16% of Members of Parliament are women, and in the project's target municipalities, women comprise only 12.7% of elected members of the Sakrebulo (City Council).
• The forestry sector in Georgia is heavily male-dominated. Within the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture (MoEPA) bodies responsible for forests, men make up 86.1% of the staff and 75% of decision-making positions.
• Gender-specific patterns of forest use exist: men use forests more frequently for economic gain, such as fuel wood and construction materials for sale, while women primarily collect non-timber products like berries and herbs for household consumption.
• Women are the primary controllers of fuel wood consumption in the home, managing heating, cooking, and water heating, despite men typically performing the cutting and harvesting of the wood.
• Women in Georgia experience 'time poverty' due to a disproportionate load of unpaid care work and household tasks. Women spend an average of 45 hours per week on these activities, compared to 15 hours for men.
• There is a significant gender wage gap in Georgia, which was 427 GEL in 2017, driven by both horizontal segregation (women in lower-paid professions) and vertical segregation (women in lower-ranking positions).
• Poverty rates are high in the project's target regions: 49.3% in Mtskheta-Mtianeti, 45.3% in Guria, and 35.3% in Kakheti.
• Domestic violence and early marriage remain significant barriers to human capital for women. In Kakheti and Guria, there is a high share of women married before the age of 18, at 12.4% and 10.2% respectively.

APA

Sumbadze, N. (2020). Enabling Implementation of Forest Sector Reform in Georgia to Reduce GHG Emissions From Forest Degradation. Green Climate Fund. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp132-gender-assessment.pdf

Chicago

Sumbadze, Nana. Enabling Implementation of Forest Sector Reform in Georgia to Reduce GHG Emissions From Forest Degradation. Green Climate Fund, 2020. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp132-gender-assessment.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Sumbadze |first1=Nana |title=Enabling Implementation of Forest Sector Reform in Georgia to Reduce GHG Emissions From Forest Degradation |publisher=Green Climate Fund |date=7 September 2020 |url=https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp132-gender-assessment.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sumbadze2020enabling, author = {Sumbadze, Nana}, title = {{Enabling Implementation of Forest Sector Reform in Georgia to Reduce GHG Emissions From Forest Degradation}}, institution = {Green Climate Fund}, year = {2020}, month = sep, url = {https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp132-gender-assessment.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }