Supporting women displaced from armed conflicts to enter the labor market in Armenia and Georgia. - The Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law

Siranush Grigoryan and Tamar Tagagari, two talented changemakers from Armenia and Georgia, got the opportunity to meet in Lund in June 2022. Tamar and Siranush were among the participants of the Swedish Institute for Young Professionals (SAYP) ‘Perspectives on Multi-level Governance, Decentralization & Human Rights, which was held in Lund in June 2022. SAYP is organized in collaboration with the Lund University Commissioned Education (LUCE), Lund University School of Economics and Management (LUSEM), and the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (RWI). It gave the participants the opportunity to learn about the role of public administration in protecting human rights, the rule of law, and democracy.

Following the SAYP program, Siranush and Tamar initiated a project and succeeded to get support for the implementation in Armenia and Georgia. The project aimed to integrate women displaced due to the armed conflict into the Georgian and Armenian labor markets.

Let’s get to know the SAYP alumni better.

Siranush is a Ph.D. student and president of the “Dream Youth” social-youth non-governmental organization, which promotes human rights, democracy, and the rule of law among youth.

Tamar is working for the International Relations and Project Management Department of the Agency of Protected Areas, which operates under the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia.

Let’s see the inspiration of SAYP alumni for the implementation of such a project.

Siranush was worried about the consequences of the recent hostilities in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Because many young, displaced women in Armenia were struggling with unemployment due to the lack of knowledge and information on their labor rights and relating procedures.

At the same time, Tamar mentioned that, due to the armed conflict, approximately 250 000 ethnic Georgians were expelled from their homes live in Tbilisi and face a lot of obstacles related to violenceand unemployment in their daily lives. Tamar also highlights that the main reason for these challenges is a lack of awareness about their labor rights.

Considering these facts, Siranush and Tamar decided to make a little contribution to society by increasing awareness about labor rights and enhancing the employability skills of the young women displaced due to the armed conflicts for securing future employment in Armenia and Georgia.

Let’s discover the project activities.

The 2-day training was conducted in Tbilisi on 24-25 November 2022, with the participation of internally displaced women from Abkhazia. Training participants had the opportunity to get familiar with the fundamental rights of internally displaced people, Georgian Legislation in this regard, and the role of the Parliament of Georgia in implementing the women’s peace and security agenda.

Moreover, they got acquainted with the challenges and barriers they might face during the working process. After completing the theoretical part, training participants carried out the practical assignment, particularly, “create your own ideal working environment”. Through the activity,training participants were actively involved in the process and thus, equipped with both practical and theoretical skills.

In Armenia, a series of courses on “Labor rights of internally displaced women and girls” took place at Yerevan State University, Faculty of Law. The courses were held for 5 days in total and aimed to increase the confidence and knowledge of young women displaced due to the armed conflict in the Nagorno Karabakh and prepare them for the labor market. As such, the training covered Human Resources, LaborLaw, Communications, leadership, and women empowerment topics.

The participants of the training learned how to prepare a literate resume, and became acquainted with the different types of interviews and questions that might be asked. Later they have been taught about the main basis of labor law, the principle of freedom of work, the principle of prohibiting all forms of compulsory or forced labor as well as violence against workers, the structure of working time, the salary institute, and the legal regulation of labor remuneration organizations. In addition, during Communications, Leadership, and Women’s Empowerment session, young ladies learned about communication skills, email etiquette, body language, negotiation techniques, and leadership styles.

An online joint meeting with Armenian and Georgian participants was arranged on Zoom during the project’s final phase. The participantshad a chance for networking and experience exchange on the challenges of the labor market that they have faced previously.

The training positively affected the participants as they have been highlighting the development of skills and competence, the increase of knowledge on the labor law, and self-confidence. Moreover, the developed resumes within the training and interview knowledge enabled them to apply for various vacancies.

Let’s see how Siranush and Tamar managed to implement such an impressive project.

Siranush and Tamar highlight that they had strong cooperation because of the similar societal issues in both countries. More specifically, the challenges such as low competencies, oppression of women, and lack of jobs that young women displaced in Armenia and Georgia experience in labor market while searching for employment. Moreover, the fact of being from the South Caucasus, and sharing variouscommon traditions and cultural and behavioral similarities has made their work very enjoyable and productive.