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Georgia

Rebuilding Lives Implementing Partner: Save the Children, Inc., with subgrantees Child & Environment (Tbilisi, Chiatura), and Society Biliki (Gori) Funding Period: September 2004 – September 2009 Amount: $3,687,752 Purpose: Strengthen and expand local capacities to promote the physical, cognitive, emotional, psychological, and social well-being of unattended children living and working on the street. Objectives: Bring a set of quality services to vulnerable children (street children and other at-risk children) through centers and mobile teams Assist vulnerable children in attending school Enhance the coordination between government authorities and international and local NGOs working on behalf of vulnerable children Improve standards and policies that benefit vulnerable children Improve familiy counseling services Improve the managerial capabilities of local NGOs Involve vulnerable children in decisions that affect their lives Increase media coverage of issues that affect vulnerable children

The Rebuilding Lives Project (RLP) works to supplement the government of Georgia’s family welfare program through four major strategies:

1. Provision of model quality social services to 450 children and 250 families in four urban localities. The RLP project is the largest single initiative in Georgia focusing on specific children/family groups and implemented by an NGO. The RLP program is one of the few providers of such social services in the country, yet those services are seen by the government as the most important elements of a future network of services that can provide to children and families an alternative to institutional care.
2. Policy reform by means of support to the government’s child welfare and deinstitutionalization program. Save the Children—through the RLP project—and its local partner organizations have been key participants in one of Georgia’s major reform efforts.
3. Capacity building for children and families, local implementing partners, community members, and other stakeholders, which resulted in greater child and family participation in service design and implementation; increased volunteer participation in service delivery; expanding linkages with businesses, NGOs, public institutions, and individuals aimed at supporting the partner organizations and/or individual beneficiaries; and closer cooperation between the partner NGOs, government, and academic institutions. Through all those elements, the project contributes to strengthening and expanding the local knowledge and skills base for addressing the needs of the most vulnerable children in Georgia.
4. Public awareness activities, which provide information to address negative stereotypes and inform the public about existing support for children. The messages were delivered to an estimated 50,000 people through local video debates, round table meetings, press conferences, and public events. The project secured wide coverage for its activities through TV, radio, newspaper, and electronic media. Specialist training for local journalists was also conducted.

In Georgia, through its partnership with Save the Children, USAID also works with and on behalf of people with disabilities. There, project staff work with the Georgian Coalition for Independent Living to empower members of the DPO community to work on behalf of people with disabilities. The project uses best practices from international partners to strengthen national, regional, and local associations and enable them to establish working relationships with government organizations. In addition, the project is working to education the public on the civil rights of people with disabilities by producing videos and radio programs on elections and accessibility.

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