gender

Based on the analysis of the project documentation, independent media reports, surveys and discussions with local civil society revealed that the Nenskra project represents the perfect example of a gender blind project, where the project sponsor fails to identify the negative social and gender impacts on the community, to protect women from disproportionately bearing the negative impacts and to ensure that women and men benefit equally from the project.

A majority of the local population protests against the construction of the Shuakhevi HPP for various reasons, including issues related to land and water “grabbing”, geological risks posed by construction works, employment
problems, etc.

The purpose of this study is to assess the project’s gender impacts on the affected population as well as to evaluate whether the project related documentation and construction process meets the requirements of international financial institutions.

In spite of positive elements the EBRD's Draft Strategy for the Promotion of Gender Equality is unclear or appears to lack consistency in some parts. More importantly, the EBRD's failure to take a rights-based approach to gender equality has resulted in a limited vision of gender equality of economic opportunity “as a key tool” for promoting efficient market transition. By making the business case for gender equality this approach may ensure stronger ownership of the Strategy by the bank, but it is a missed opportunity for aligning the Strategy with the bank's unique Sustainable Development mandate. Without a persuasive presentation of the EBRD's strategic approach to safeguarding gender rights, the draft of the Strategy lacks justification for choosing to promote women while refusing to protect them.