Donors pledge US $900 million in aid

Donors and aid agencies have pledged to increase aid to Tajikistan, the poorest of the Central Asian nations, in an effort to fight increasing poverty there. "Tajikistan is still trying to get back on track, and there needs to be a more concerted effort in order for things to change," the country manager for the World Bank in Tajikistan, Cevdet Denizer, told IRIN from the capital, Dushanbe. Pledges totalling US $900 million over the next three years were made for a poverty-focused programme presented by the Tajik government to the Consultative Group for Tajikistan during a meeting chaired by the World Bank in Dushanbe between 2 and 3 May. About two-thirds of the total was pledged in grants. "We are aware of the urgency of deepening social and economic reforms, and ensuring sustainable growth," Tajik President Emomali Rahmonov said following the meeting. "We have turned the page on humanitarian assistance and are now embarked on a full-blown programme of development." Under the World Bank's Country Assistance Strategy (CAS) for Tajikistan 2003-2005, a lending programme of $80 million will be allocated. "The goal of the CAS is to support implementation of the government's Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper [PRSP] in order to raise living standards in the country," Denizer said. The Tajik government's focus is on improving health and education services, rehabilitating the crumbling infrastructure, and supporting private sector development in a country where 80 percent of people live below the poverty line. The programme is based on the PRSP recently prepared by the government in consultation with the private sector and NGOs. The last time the Consultative Group for Tajikistan came together was in 2001, when pledges totalling $390 million were made. However, this was not met, and although officials at the World Bank office in Dushanbe could not confirm what was actually delivered in financial assistance then, they said it was "significantly less" than the amount pledged. "This time round donors and the Tajik government know they need to be more serious about getting the money in and really working on fighting poverty," Denizer maintained. The previous World Bank CAS for Tajikistan (1999-2001) addressed rural infrastructure and focused on creating growth outside. As a result, over half a million people benefited from the implementation of 184 micro-projects, 20 pilot schools were rehabilitated, and 18 new textbook titles were printed and distributed countrywide. In addition to this, 10 collective farms were restructured into about 300 private farms, with a total of 41 bridges and 40 health-care facilities built. More than 105 km of roads, and irrigation canals supplying water to about 16,000 ha of land have also been rehabilitated in the areas of Tajikistan most affected by war.