By Lela Javakhishvili, Tornike Korkotashvili
Abstract
The study aims to identify the educational needs of the Koni Municipality population. For this purpose, qualitative research, namely focus group discussions were conducted in the region. Total of 6 focus groups were conducted in the town of Koni and village of Nakhakhulevi. Respondents were divided into focus groups according to their age and place of residence, rural or urban settlements within Khoni municipality. The research showed that poverty and unemployment are one of the most pressing economic issues in the municipality. Majority of the currently employed individuals in the municipality work in agricultural, retail trade and furniture production sectors. Due to lack of educational centers in the municipality and limited financial resources, the majority of the local population does not have access to post-secondary formal or informal education. Namely, among most demanded skills and knowledge were foreign language proficiency, computer literacy and craftsmanship. Thus, these are the spheres the population would be willing to have training courses locally.