FAO, under the EU-funded EU Innovative Action for Private Sector Competitiveness in Georgia, brought International citrus expert, FAO consultant, Dr. Ismail Karaca to study Georgia’s citrus production potential and the challenges of the sector. Dr. Karaca visited Adjara Autonomous Republic, the region with the largest citrus production in Georgia. During his visit, the expert conducted a series of trainings, field visits and meetings with state extension specialists and farmers.

Dr. Karaca shared with the extension team of the Ministry of Agriculture of Adjara Autonomous Republic his experience in the citrus production in Turkey including pest management, and the use of pests’ natural enemies to eliminate the infestation. During the field visits in several villages in Khelvachauri and Kobuleti municipalites in Adjara, the FAO consultant monitored citrus plantations, studying the parasites and pests present in the orchards.

The findings of the mission were presented to the state extension department management and provided context for the training sessions conducted by FAO on Integrated Pest Management and Climate Change Effects on the biodiversity and agriculture including the importance of biologic control and the dangers of heavy chemicals use for the pest control as it destroys the ecological balance in the orchards, killing the natural enemies together with pests.  

“Pests have natural enemies, and they can be used to control the parasite population, instead of using heavy chemicals” Dr. Karaca stated.

FAO, with the EU support supports the government of Georgia with the information sharing sessions and trainings to support the agricultural sector by bringing best agricultural knowledge and expertise to the country.

“This time we brought our attention to the citrus sector in Adjara Autonomous Republic which has a good potential to drive the region’s agriculture forward and increase the economic profitability of farmers. FAO and the EU stay committed to support farmers in Georgia to make the agriculture sector more competitive and profitable,” said Javier Sanz Alvarez, EU-FAO Project Coordinator.

EU Innovative Action for Private Sector Competitiveness in Georgia is a joint initiative of the European Union and four UN Agencies, which was launched in 2019 with a budget of EUR 5 million. The project aims at enhancing entrepreneurship and business sophistication by strengthening the capacities of government and local entities to develop and operate clusters and supporting companies directly with strategic investments and better connections to diaspora groups, while also demonstrating the effectiveness of these strategies to businesses.