Single parents-related legislative issues and pro bono legal services were discussed during the joint event of the Council of Europe Office in Georgia and the Georgian Bar Association. 

Single parents are among the list of vulnerable groups, particularly in times of the COVID-19 crisis. To ensure unhindered access to justice, the Council of Europe, in cooperation with the Georgian Bar Association supports free of charge pro bono legal representation for single parents in Georgia. The event has overviewed the midterm results of this initiative.  

The event was opened by the Chairperson of the Georgian Bar Association Davit Asatiani, the Head of the Council of Europe Office in Georgia Natalia Voutova, the Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Norway to Georgia Helene Sand Andresen. 

The second part of the event was dedicated to the current legislative impediments for single parents with remarks by the Deputy Public Defender Ekaterine Skhiladze and the Member of the Gender Equality Council of the Parliament, Nino Tsilosani. 

The project implementation demonstrated legislative and socio-economic challenges as well as the associated stigma, especially in the case of women, faced by single parents in Georgia. The law may not fully respond to the reality due to which de facto single parents are left without a status and social benefits. 

The event is used to raise these issues and consider potential solutions once again.

The activity was organised within the framework of the Council of Europe Project “Support to the profession of lawyer in Georgia” funded by voluntary contributions from Norway, European Union, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, HRTF, Luxembourg, France, Netherlands, Liechtenstein, Fund to End Violence Against Children, and Latvia to support the implementation of the Council of Europe Action plan for Georgia 2020-2023.