Azerbaijan Both Georgia
Primary and Secondary Education Support Grants – Project Profiles – Educational Partnerships Program
>> With an FY 2000 grant under the NIS College and University Partnerships Program, Iowa State University assisted Gogol State Pedagogical University to strengthen its teacher training programs through faculty and curriculum development, teaching, lecturing, joint conferences, collaborative research, modernization, and outreach. The project addresses three central needs. First, project participants acquire knowledge and skills necessary to use information technologies successfully both for their own professional development and to enhance student learning. Second, it enables teacher training faculty in both universities to enhance the knowledge and understanding of their content areas. Third, it introduces innovative pedagogy in both Ukraine and the United States. Funding source: FSA ... [Read More]
Georgia
ENTRY/EXIT REQUIREMENTS: A passport and visa are required. U.S. citizens may obtain a visa upon arrival at Tbilisi Airport, the Port of Poti, and the Red Bridge ("Tsiteli Khidi") crossing on Georgia's border with Azerbaijan. Americans intending to enter Georgia at other points-of-entry must obtain a visa beforehand at a Georgian embassy or consulate abroad. Armenian and Azerbaijani visas are no longer valid for transit through Georgia. Travelers to Georgia must fill out a customs declaration upon arrival that is to be presented to customs officials when departing the country. (Please see also the section on Special Circumstances.) For further information, please contact the Embassy of Georgia at 1101 15th Street, Suite 602, NW, Washington DC, 20005 tel. (202) 387-239 ... [Read More]
Armenia (04/05)
Like other New Independent States of the former Soviet Union, Armenia's economy suffers from the legacy of a centrally planned economy and the breakdown of former Soviet trading patterns. Soviet investment in and support of Armenian industry has virtually disappeared, so that few major enterprises are still able to function. In addition, the effects of the 1988 earthquake, which killed more than 25,000 people and made 500,000 homeless, are still being felt. Although a cease-fire has held since 1994, the conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh has not been resolved. The consequent closure of both the Azerbaijani and Turkish borders has devastated the economy, because of Armenia's dependence on outside supplies of energy and most raw materials. Land routes through Azerbaijan and Turkey are closed; routes through Georgia and Iran are inadequate or unreliable. In 1992-93, GDP fell nearly 60% from its 1989 level. The national currency, the dram, suffered hyperinflation for the first ... [Read More]
Freedom Support Educational Partnerships Program – Project Profiles – Educational Partnerships Program
The University of Georgia and the Institute of History at the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences are partnered to strengthen teaching capacity and develop instructional resources at both institutions in the area of international relations and contemporary Central Asian studies. In addition the Institute for Strategic and Regional Studies (ISRS) under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan is a secondary partner that conducts outreach to the Uzbek government community. ... [Read More]
Georgia
The Constitution recognizes the equality of all citizens without regard to race, language, sex, skin color, political views, national, ethnic, or social affiliation, origin, social status, land ownership, or place of residence; however, in practice, discrimination against women was a problem. The Constitution stipulates that Georgian is the state language. Ethnic Armenians, Azeris, Greeks, Abkhaz, Ossetians, and Russians usually communicated in their native languages or in Russian. Both Georgian and Russian were used for interethnic communication. ... [Read More]
FY 2005 NGO Guidelines for South Caucasus Programs
In the South Caucasus, solutions for refugee and IDP housing are desperately needed. According to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), roofing, heating, insulation, water supply and sanitation conditions are appalling in many IDP collective centers. With the notion of "temporary integration" finally taking hold in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia, the need to get IDPs into decent, permanent housing comes to the fore. It is in this context that PRM continues to fund projects that address the shelter needs of refugees and IDPs in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. In FY2004, PRM funded seven NGOs to rehabilitate 135 of worst IDP and refugee collective centers in Georgia and Armenia, and to construct 92 new houses in Azerbaijan for IDPs who lived in dugouts. ... [Read More]
Georgia (02/05)
Georgia's recorded history dates back more than 2,500 years. Georgian -- a South Caucasian (or “Kartvelian”) language unrelated to any other outside the immediate region -- is one of the oldest living languages in the world, and it has its own distinctive alphabet. Tbilisi, located in the picturesque Mtkvari River valley, is more than 1,500 years old. In the early 4th century Georgia adopted Christianity, only the second nation in the world to do so officially, and Orthodox Christianity -- in combination with a unique language and alphabet -- proved to be key factors in preserving Georgia’s separate identity for so many centuries. Georgia has historically found itself on the margins of great empires, and Georgians have lived together in a unified state for only a small fraction of their existence as a people. Much of Georgia's territory was fought over by Persian, Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Mongol, and Turkish armies from at least the 1st century B.C. through the 18th century. The zenith ... [Read More]
Joint Statement of the United States, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan
On December 23, Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs A. Elizabeth Jones met with the Ambassadors from Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan to discuss future cooperation between the United States and GUUAM. At this meeting, both sides agreed to the next steps for joint U.S.-GUUAM project on trade and transportation facilitation, and law enforcement. Through these projects, the United States and GUUAM further their common goals of combating terrorism and transnational crime and encouraging effective multinational cooperation. ... [Read More]
V. Country Narratives -- Countries A through G
Georgia is a source and transit country for women and men trafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitation and forced labor. Victims are trafficked through Georgia from Ukraine, Russia, and other former Soviet republics to destinations such as Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Greece, Western Europe, and the United States. Evidence suggests there is some internal trafficking within Georgia, though only one case has been confirmed in the last two years. The Government of Georgia does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. The government took steps to implement several of its commitments, yet some important pledges remain unfulfilled. The government established and adequately supported a new police anti-trafficking unit, replacing the previous administration’s dysfunctional anti-traff ... [Read More]
Azerbaijan (10/04)
Azerbaijan combines the heritage of two venerable civilizations--the Seljuk Turks of the 11th century and the ancient Persians. Its name is thought to be derived from the Persian phrase "Land of Fire," referring both to its petroleum deposits, known since ancient times, and to its status as a former center of the Zoroastrian faith. The Azerbaijani Republic borders the Iranian provinces of East and West Azerbaijan, although they have not been united into a single state in modern times. ... [Read More]
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