Nino Tsereteli is a psychologist by profession. She has been working for Tanadgoma, a Georgian non-governmental organization that has been working to improve the physical and mental health of the Georgian population by providing reliable information, as well as anonymous, confidential and free-of-charge counseling through face-to-face visits, a hotline and outdoor/outreach sessions.

Georgia continues to experience increasing poverty and economic, social and political difficulties as well as an ongoing reduction in its population of over 5 million people. A confluence of factors has contributed to problems among youth in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region. Unemployment and economic insecurity are common. Traditional social and cultural norms have eroded, and new common values are not yet firmly entrenched. The economic and psychological aftermath of recent wars in the region have left their mark on young people in many countries, especially Georgia.

The two most acute SRH problems facing young people are STIs and unwanted pregnancies. Sexual activity generally begins at an earlier age than in the past, but young people have inadequate information about safe sex and contraception. Among 15-19 year-old-women, the fertility rate exceeds 50 births per thousand. Unprecedented numbers of young people terminate their secondary schooling, and drug use is steadily becoming a more frequent feature of secondary school life.

Although Georgia faces many challenges, the Government has identified areas of concern for future strategies including: decreasing regional, financial, and gender imbalances to access RH services; upgrading skills and medical facilities to increase quality of services; addressing the controversy related to free HIV testing to high-risk population groups only; and strengthening youth friendly RH information and services.

UNFPA supported small-scale activities related to HIV/AIDS awareness creation through an umbrella project. Some of the activities covered include addressing trafficking, and violence against women and commercial sex workers (CSWs) through outreach.

In the area of young people and HIV prevention, currently Population Services International (PSI) uses branded and generic mass media and interpersonal communications to reach thousands of young people across Georgia. PSI launched the youth condom brand “Favorite” in 2001. Radio, print, and television ads supported the launch and successfully established the brand as the affordable, quality condom for young people.

Over 50,000 young people have attended concerts in Tbilisi and Batumi featuring popular entertainers delivering safer sex messages. Radio talk shows featuring “sexologists” and guest celebrities educate young Georgian listeners about unsafe behaviors and how to protect themselves against sexually transmitted diseases and unintended pregnancies. Educational materials are distributed in pharmacies, family planning offices, reproductive health centres, and at youth-oriented events and locations, such as concerts and schools. UNFPA has been supporting the social marketing campaign in Georgia since 2002.