The World Abaza Congress summed up the work of the Local branches over the past three months.

Local branches of the World Abaza Congress in six Abkhazian villages - Otkhara, Uarcha, Mguydzyrkhua, Kaldakhuara, Chlou, Dzhirkhua and in the town of Pitsunda have implemented eight big projects over the past three months.  Coordinators of the Local branches of the Congress Dmitry Zhiba and Valery Berzenia told the details about each project to the WAC web portal.

Dmitry Zhiba spoke about the results of work in the Kaldakhuara village. The WAC donated sports equipment to the sports and athletic hall of the boarding school of the village: barbells, weights, dumbbells and various sports racks. Denis Otyrba, a friend of the World Abaza Congress, helped to implement the project.

The Congress restored a landmark place - a bus station in the same village. This station has a distinct architectural style. The villagers themselves asked for help in its restoration.

"We (the Congress) helped to acquire the construction materials necessary for the restoration. Local residents took part in the process itself. As a result, we received the most positive feedback. Local residents note that, finally, after many years, the main station of the village has been restored," said Dmitry Zhiba.

Through the efforts of the head of the local branch of the WAC in the village of Kaldakhuara, Satbey Chukbar, it was possible to buy a uniform for the local basketball team. Moreover, thanks to the efforts of Chukbar, a school biology class was equipped and the instruments necessary for practical work were purchased.

"At first glance it may seem that these projects are insignificant, but they are not. Such projects give an impulse: the residents themselves are inspired to develop. Subbotniks have already been planned, and there is a desire to go further," said the head of the Ministry of Defense of the Congress.

According to Dmitry Zhiba, in the near future the WAC is going to donate a microscope to the Kaldakhuara school for the biology class.

The WAC took an active part in the arrangement of the sports hall of the local school in the village of Dzhirkhua. The necessary construction materials were presented on behalf of the Congress, and the head of the school Gunda Yenik, thanks to the efforts of the villagers, brought labor force to the construction work.

“Much has already been done, all the villagers are very happy with us in the progress of this matter. I would like to thank the Congress and personally Mussa Ekzekov for the assistance provided, since today's schoolchildren, those who will come to us to study in the future, and all the villagers await the launch of the gym with trepidation," Yenik said.

The WAC continues work on the restoration of the sports hall in the village of Dzhirkhua
© WAC

During a working trip of the WAC employees to Pitsunda, the head of the local branch of the WAC, Timur Agrba, addressed the Congress with a request to help in the acquisition of malberts for an art class led by Svetlana Lyubomirskaya.  Malberts were necessary for exhibitions and various events.

"Less than a month later, the WAC responded to our request and fulfilled its promise. I say thank you very much," said the head of the WAC LB in Pitsunda Timur Agrba.

WAC donated malberts for an art class in Pitsunda
© WAC

Today, the WAC is improving the park area in the village of Uarcha. As conceived by the Congress, a playground and a workout area will be built in the park: the village was in great need of them.

The head of the local office in Uarcha, Anrik Lomia, said that there were simply no playgrounds in the village, and that is why local residents addressed the WAC with a request to equip a children's zone. 

"There are many children in our village, and they really wanted a playground. It was very pleasant that our request was built upon further. The parents are especially happy. People in the village are inspired, ready to help with what they can. Everyone is grateful to the Congress, and this is very pleasant," said Anrik Lomia.

In the village of Chlou, the WAC repaired a wrestling hall. Valeriy Berzenia, coordinator of the local branches of the Congress, said that such a request came from the villagers themselves during one of the working meetings.

The WAC continues work on the restoration of the sports hall in the village of Dzhirkhua
© WAC

"There is a freestyle wrestling coach Timur Dzhopua in the village, and there are kids who go in for sports, but there was no gym. Local residents found a place themselves, found coaches from Sukhum who offered their help. Repairs were made by representatives of the Local branch, who were helped by the Chlou residents," the coordinator shared the details.

The head of the Local branch in Chlou Ansou Anua noted that the villagers are eagerly awaiting the opening of the wrestling hall. He also noted that working with the WAC inspired many people to create new projects for the village.

"This is a very important work, as people feel support, and villages need support. Local residents are willing and ready to stand next to everyone who wants to help the village.  People have an interest in the work of the WAC, they talk about it at our meetings," said Anua.

Coordinator Valery Berzenia said that the opening of the wrestling hall will take place very soon, and that the coach is ready to start training children.

A similar idea was born to renovate a classroom in a local school at one of the working meetings of the WAC with an asset from another village - Otkhara. The idea was well received by the villagers, it was supported in the Congress, and a month later the class was ready to accept children.

"The school is big, every year there are more children, not all classes are in working order.  We decided to have time to renovate the classroom by the beginning of the school year. A colossal contribution was made by the head of the Local branch Amiran Bzhania and the village activists. The Congress provided building materials, the rest was found by the guys from the village on their own. Repairs were carried out by the residents themselves, even schoolchildren stood next to them," said Berzenia.

The WAC is going to hold several open lessons at this school on various topics: ecology, rural development, the history of the Abkhaz-Abaza people and the fraternal peoples of the Caucasus.

WAC repaired the classroom of the local school in the village of Otkhara
© WAC

In the village of Mgudzirkhua, a dance hall is being renovated thanks to the efforts of the World Abaza Congress. In accepting this project, the WAC was also guided by the requests of local residents who wanted to organize a space for the creative development of children. 

"The Congress covered the expenses for the first phase of the renovation. The repair itself was done by representatives of the Local branch and the villagers. There were those with experience in construction work and those who just wanted to help. We hope that very soon the hall will be ready to receive children," said Valeriy Berzenia.

The head of the Local branch Marta Dzhikirba noted that the villagers already know about the work of the World Abaza Congress, which unites representatives of the Abkhaz-Abaza people.

She said that on May 28 of this year, a meeting was held with representatives of the Congress in Mgudzirkhua.

"We talked about the problems of the village and the school. Representatives of the Congress took up the renovation of the dance hall. At the end of August, we purchased wiring and shades for the room. We were required to calculate the building materials for the renovation of the hall and the locker room, which we did. A month ago, with the involvement of craftsmen, we compiled a list of building materials, which we provided to Valera Berzenia," said Dzhikirba.

She noted that the work of the Congress is important, in particular, due to the very approach to problems, since the WAC "is paying attention to the problems of the society." She added that there are many problems, and often the government does not always have time to solve them.

"It is very important to support villages, support rural schools for the preservation and development of the Abkhaz language and traditional culture. On behalf of our village, I want to thank the organizers and representatives of the Congress for the fact that they are not only care about the villages, but also try to resolve them," said the head of the LB.

WAC donated malberts for an art class in Pitsunda
© WAC

The World Abaza Congress is actively working in the Abkhazian villages. All projects implemented by the Congress in this direction are being worked out in close contact with the residents of these villages. It is they who formulate the requests, say what they need, and the Congress helps to realize the set tasks. The main idea of ​​work in the villages is that the local residents themselves are involved in the work on all projects, everyone helps in any way they can. At first glance, many projects may seem insignificant, however, according to the residents themselves, they serve as a powerful impetus for the development of the village. The heads of the Local branches note that after the implementation of projects, villagers have a desire to work on other projects for the benefit of their village.

To date, the World Abaza Congress has opened more than 30 Local branches in Abkhazia (abbreviated as LB). The WAC holds regular working meetings with members of the LB, which help to better understand the problems of a particular village and its residents.