On October 15 and 22, 2023, in Akhalkalaki and Tbilisi, the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) held information meetings within the framework of the project funded by the NATO Public Diplomacy Programs/Division - "Overcoming barriers to fight misinformation among ethnic minorities".

Ethnic minorities living in Georgia are vulnerable to misinformation, especially regarding the issue of NATO. This may be due to the language barrier and the use of Russian media. The project aims to fight against the mentioned barriers, to eliminate the anti-NATO attitude and lack of knowledge in the communities of ethnic minorities living in the regions of Georgia; getting acquainted with the security guarantees that Georgia will receive in case of NATO membership; Raising awareness about NATO and its mission in Georgia, promoting the resilience of ethnic minority communities against disinformation.

The representatives of the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) informed the participants of the event held in Akhalkalaki and Tbilisi about the project. The training sessions were led by guest trainers Gohar Aghjoyan and Nodar Kiria.

Gohar Aghjoyan spoke about the history of the establishment of NATO, its main principles, goals and values, at the same time, she discussed the relationship between NATO and Georgia from different aspects, she focused on the role of NATO in resolving conflicts, the characteristics of the Kremlin's disinformation and the myths about NATO spread in Samtskhe-Javakheti. on myths. Within the framework of group work, he spoke about the spread of the mentioned myths and the means of defense against them.

Nodar Kiria spoke about the methods of verifying information and ways of identifying disinformation. In particular, how it is possible to easily find the primary source of information and in this way find out the identity of the disinformation spreader. He also focused on the methods that anti-Western forces use to influence the views of readers and the tools that can be used to defend against them. 

Participants of the event were given bilingual certificates after the training session.

The event was held with the financial support of NATO Public Diplomacy Programs/Division.