A joint meeting of the Interim Commission on Women’s and Children’s Issues, the Council on Women’s and Children’s Issues of the Supreme Council of Ajara AR, and the Municipal Council on Women's and Children's Issues of Batumi Municipality was held at the Supreme Council of Ajara AR.

The meeting was opened by the Chair of the Supreme Council of Ajara AR, Tsotne Ananidze, who addressed the participants.

“Today, we have the opportunity to bring together representatives of all three levels of government and focus our efforts on improving the situation of women and children. We have accumulated considerable experience in addressing these issues”, - stated Tsotne Ananidze.

Chair of the Interim Commission on Women’s and Children’s Issues, Mariam Lashkhi, highlighted the importance of the issues placed on the meeting’s agenda.

“Today’s discussion on promoting the improvement of the socio-economic conditions of families with children is of particular importance, as the well-being of families directly determines both children’s opportunities for development and the country’s social and demographic sustainability. Today, Ajara stands out as one of Georgia’s leading regions in implementing policies supporting families, women and children. Numerous targeted social and healthcare programmes operate across the municipalities, having been developed over the years in response to local needs and now representing examples of successful practice.

For this reason, when the Commission was established, we considered from the outset that its work should not be confined solely to the parliamentary format”, - Mariam Lashkhi stated.

According to her, when Parliament, regional representative bodies and local self-government institutions come together to address common challenges, such cooperation goes beyond the exchange of information and serves as an effective mechanism for coordinating state policy.

Mariam Lashkhi also summarised the outcomes of the Commission's regional outreach meetings, noting that the discussions had identified several key priorities. She stressed that support for families with children extends beyond the provision of social assistance and requires a comprehensive, cross-sectoral policy approach.

“Our discussions highlighted several priority areas, including housing policy, access to early childhood care and development services, the economic empowerment of parents - particularly women - raising public awareness, and further improving the maternity and parental leave system. Through joint efforts, it is important to strengthen the institution of the family, promote family values, and create an environment that provides young people with genuine opportunities and motivation to establish families and have children. Such a comprehensive approach is one of the key prerequisites for the country’s demographic sustainability and future development”, - the Commission Chair noted.

During the joint meeting, Fati Khalvashi, Chair of the Council on Women's and Children's Issues of the Supreme Council of Ajara, andN atalia Zoidze, Head of the Municipal Council on Women’s and Children’s Issues of Batumi Municipality, delivered presentations and addressed the agenda items.

The meeting was attended by Commission members, Vice Speakers of the Parliament of Georgia Nino Tsilosani and Ilia Injia, as well as representatives of the local authorities.