Organized by Imereti Regional HUB – Local Democracy Agency Georgia (LDA Georgia) and Education Development and Employment Center (EDEC), Akaki Tsereteli State University hosted a Civil Society Regional Forum in Kutaisi. The main purpose of the forum was to promote a culture of volunteerism, to attract potential donors and to strengthen civil society in the Imereti region. The forum was attended by local non-governmental organisations (NGOs), students, donors, representatives of self-governments and media outlets.

The first panel was dedicated to the needs and challenges facing civil society, as well as to the presentation of the concept of CSOs’ transition to public funding.

The second panel interlinked the potential donors and civil society organisations . On the one hand, invited donor organisations: German Agency for Inernational Cooperation (GIZ), Embassy of Japan, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Europe Foundation, presented their grant programs, and on the other hand, civil society organisations were given the opportunity to participate in the Q&A session, to get familiarised with the works of the CSOs, and to plan the future collaborations.

During the third panel of the forum, the volunteering challenges and opportunities in Georgia were discussed.

Moreover, within the framework of the forum, an exhibition of Imereti-based CSOs was organised where they presented their current works and activities. The forum was attended by more than 300 people.

The forum was attended by local non-governmental organisations (NGOs), students, donors, representatives of region as well as self-governments and media outlets.

The forum was organised within the framework of the project "Civil Society STAR Initiative: CSO's as Sustainable, Transparent, and Accountable and Resilient Development Actors in Georgia", supported by the European Union (EU) and the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS).