Nino Rukhadze, Executive Director of the National Association of Local Authorities of Georgia, delivered a speech at the 10th Global Forum on Statistics.
At the large-scale event, organized by the National Statistics Office of Georgia and the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD), one of the main topics was discussing the importance of gender data for policy planning and promoting sustainable development.
During her speech, Nino Rukhadze emphasized the importance of data collection and analysis for municipalities, which is essential for making balanced decisions tailored to real needs, particularly in ensuring gender equality in local policy.
According to the Association’s leader, local governments are the closest link to the population, therefore they primarily need to enhance their knowledge in proactive data collection and analysis.
“Municipalities must have the appropriate tools to determine what data to collect and how to translate them into policy decisions,” stated Nino Rukhadze.
The Executive Director of NALAG informed the audience about the measures implemented by the Association and its partner organizations in this direction.
“NALAG, in collaboration with UN Women and the National Statistics Office, developed indicators that enable municipalities to collect data for ensuring gender equality in policy planning and decision-making processes. We jointly conducted training sessions for municipalities, and it can be confidently stated that these indicators are now actively integrated into their daily operations. Among others, the indicators are integrated into the action plans of municipal councils working on women’s and children’s issues, which NALAG developed together with municipality representatives, UN Women, and field experts,” noted Nino Rukhadze.
The forum is taking place from October 1-3 at the Biltmore Hotel in Tbilisi, attended by nearly 200 participants from up to 30 countries and 17 international organizations, including heads of national statistics offices, representatives of international organizations, and government agencies. The forum serves as a global platform for exchanging knowledge, experience, and practical tools in the field of gender statistics.
The event’s motto is “Managing Change through Gender Statistics: The Path to Equality” and is held within the framework of the UN Global Gender Statistics Program. The forum discusses gender equality, women’s economic empowerment, their full participation in social and economic processes, combating violence and stereotypes against women and girls, gender aspects of migration, and issues of labor statistics, time use, and paid/unpaid work.