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Engage Local Citizens in Protecting the Truso Valley Landscape and Cultural Heritage

Engage Local Citizens in Protecting the Truso Valley Landscape and Cultural Heritage

DONOR:

USAID Civil Society Engagement Program

The project’s overall objective is to save the historical heritage and the natural landscape of the Truso valley by highlighting its significance, engaging professionals, and advocating for the government to take more effective steps to manage and protect the land. The Truso valley is a part of Kazbegi municipality that is rich in cultural and historical heritage. It includes the remains of more than 20 historical settlements, including medieval ones. Most of these settlements have not been granted cultural heritage status. In 2008, in reaction to the Russia Georgia war, the Georgian government declared a moratorium on land sale and registration in the Truso valley as it bordered the occupied territories. In 2020, the moratorium was lifted. Since then, much of the land has been appropriated, and many monuments have been damaged. The monitoring works conducted over the last 10 years have shown that the number of people using the valley for summer pastures has increased, and historical buildings are being used as a shelter for livestock. Ritual items kept in the churches have been lost and several historic buildings have been destroyed. In 2021, the Georgian parliament enacted a law on Creating and Managing the Truso Protected Landscape. According to the law, the valley must be managed by a representative council created by Kazbegi municipality. The composition of the council, its mandate, and other procedural issues must be determined by the bylaws approved by the Kazbegi government. One year has passed since the law’s enactment, and the Kazbegi government still has not created the council. It also has not taken effective measures to prevent arbitrary constructions in the Truso valley. To address these problems, the project will advocate for the timely creation of the council and the development of the Truso protected landscape management plan through citizen participation. The project will also call for declaring a moratorium on land registration in the valley until these issues are resolved.

START DATE:

END DATE:

STATUS:

USEFUL LINKS:

February 15, 2023

February 15, 2024

Completed

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