Cattle-rearing, needlework - life of summer farmers in Adjara highlands
In order to improve welfare, social and economic conditions of communities residing in mountainous areas of the country, the Government has taken steps including the approval of the Mountain Law in 2015 and the establishment of the Highland Settlements Development Fund.
The strategy for mountainous regions is part of the country’s regional development policy and is targeted to ensure equal social and economic development across the country and resolution of socio-economic challenges for locals in the highlands. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
The Government has presented the Mountain Development Strategy for the years 2019-2023 with the stated vision of “inclusive and sustainable development” of the regions based on an analysis of social and economic conditions of the highlands and their potential. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
Priorities of the strategy include support for small and medium-sized businesses, development of farming and cooperative enterprises, and promotion and production of in-demand agricultural products. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
Currently 1,801 settlements in Georgia have the status of highland areas and benefit their 264,306 inhabitants with improved social incentives outlined in the Mountain Law and the Mountain Development Strategy. The measures for support include higher pensions and salaries as well as financial assistance for those living in the regions. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
This photo report tells the story of inhabitants of Agara, a village in the mountainous part of the western Adjara region, with the settlement located 1,280 metres above sea level. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
Nearly 500 people live in the village according to the 2004 census. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
In mountain villages of Zemo Adjara, families leave their homes for three months every summer to feed cattle and prepare supplies for the rest of the year in farms. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
Summer pastures are scattered in mountains away from the villages. Farmers spend the summer in two-story, wooden plank huts. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
Rearing cattle on the farm and preparing dairy products for the winter is a time-consuming work that is mainly done by women. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
This is Maia Mgeladze, a young woman who has introduced facts about her life in the mountains. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
Maia said she and her family go to the mountains in June and stay there until September. “We collect winter supplies here - cheese, curd, butter”, she said. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
She said her day starts at 5 am in the morning, explaining “I milk the cows, let them graze, make cheese, and then the girls get together - we knit, embroider, have coffee”. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
“We meet for coffee - there is this one woman who does fortune-telling. Sometimes she will tell us a lie [about our futures], sometimes the truth. We talk and that's how we spend our time”, Maia said. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
When they have free time, women of Agara are busy with embroidery and needlework. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
Tsiuri Dimitradze, an elderly woman, compared life for the previous generations to the present and said it used to be “more difficult before”. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
She said living conditions had improved in the village. “We have water in the yard and everything. Sometimes I will say that there should not be death and that you should live a little longer, but God will not ask us [about our wishes]”. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure
Georgian institutions join International Mountain Day annually on December 11 to promote residence in mountainous settlements. The date was designated by the United Nations General Assembly in 2003 to help raise awareness about the importance of mountainous regions. Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure