Tajikistan - Rural Development

Tajikistan is an agrarian society and agriculture is critical to poverty reduction and economic growth. About twenty percent of the population lives in hilly and mountain areas where access to most government services is limited. In response to the humanitarian crisis and food shortages in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO) of Tajikistan brought about by the collapse of the Soviet economy in 1992 and the ensuing Civil War, which lasted from 1992 to 1997, the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) launched its first operation in Tajikistan in 1993. Named the Pamir Relief and Development Programme, the initial efforts of this programme supported the GBAO region to increase levels of food self sufficiency from approximately 15 percent in 1993 to 70 percent in 2003, a level that has been sustained since.

This programme was renamed the Mountain Societies Development Support Programme (MSDSP) in 1997 when it expanded into the Rasht Valley and shifted its focus from relief work to rural development. MSDSP further extended its operations, in 2002, into three mountain districts of Khatlon region.

Today, MSDSP is a locally registered organisation and a non time-bound project administered by the Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) in Tajikistan. MSDSP works in several areas in rural development, spanning community development, enterprise development, natural resource management, engineering and policy and evaluation, all of which are explored below. The Programme currently operates in 18 districts in three regions of Tajikistan, with a target population of more than 730,000 people.

Supporting Community Development
MSDSP's construction of the Roshorv Canal in GBAO's Bartang Valley has enabled the irrigation of more than 1000 hectares of land.The Community Development Unit (CDU) of MSDSP strengthens local civil society, creating synergies and networks between sub-district and district levels of local government and community-based groups. The CDU achieves this aim through support to community-based groups and local government institutions, dissemination of good practices among its partners and policy dialogue at the local and national levels.

Community Mobilisation
Since 1998, MSDSP has been working with local community-based organisations (CBOs) to strengthen their capacity to identify, prioritise and realise their development agendas. MSDSP supports communities to establish their own community-based groups and provides them with institutional support in the form of training, capacity building and community development funds. At the local level, these organisations are called Village Organisations (VOs), and at the sub-district level, Social Unions for the Development of Village Organisations (SUDVOs). To date, MSDSP has supported over 1,150 VOs and 60 SUDVOs with a total of 132,705 active village members, of which 47 percent are women.

MSDSP strengthens and empowers community based organizations at the village and sub district levels to help them take ownership over their own development agendas.With the establishment of CBOs, MSDSP seeks to enable communities to design and run their own development projects and, in time, adapt their organisations to emerging needs in a sustainable manner. The mobilisation of resources is fundamental to achieving this end. In 2007, CBOs created by MSDSP were able to raise more than US $300,000 for community development, a significant increase in the amount of financial resources available to communities through their Village Development Funds (VDF). Strategies for resource mobilisation included membership fees, grants, interest repayments and donations. In addition, in some communities in Khatlon, Rasht and GBAO, CBOs have been able to operate small income generating projects whose earnings are then re-invested in the VDF. As a result of the VDF, communities are able to contribute a substantial portion of the costs toward projects implemented with MSDSP.

Local Governance
MSDSP works increasingly with sub-district authorities to strengthen the overall capacity of sub-district Councils. Well-functioning councils at the sub-district and district levels are critical to support local governance and ensure that projects identified through a consultative process are included in the Development Plans of local government.

Initially MSDSP used “Sub-district Development Committees” (SdDCs) as a bridge between civil society and local government to identify, in a participatory manner, specific interventions that contributed to the development of the sub-district. The approach was effective, but it became apparent that the structure duplicated the role of the sub-district Council, which could do this work equally well after having some assistance. Subsequently the approach has been to unravel the roles of civil society and local government and strengthen each in its proper function, while constructing a sustainable partnership between civil society and local government for service delivery.

Supporting Economic and Social Infrastructure
Much essential economic and social infrastructure in rural GBAO, Rasht Valley and Khatlon is dilapidated. There exists a strong demand for the rehabilitation or new construction of schools, health centres and safe piped-water systems. Irrigation systems have been left without proper maintenance and new community-owned and operated systems are needed to restore and increase agricultural production. Improved feeder-roads and reliable bridges are needed to improve access to markets for inputs and products.

MSDSP has made substantial investments in community infrastructure over the past ten years and remains committed to essential economic and social infrastructure through its growing partnership with local authorities. Since 1997, MSDSP has supported the construction or rehabilitation of 402 water and sanitation projects, 864 irrigation projects, 270 road and bridge projects, 280 health facilities, 158 schools and 28 mini hydels. Alongside every project, the MSDSP Community Development Unit enables community-based organisations and local governments to ensure their maintenance over the long term through special interest groups, such as Water User Associations and Parent Committees.

As local governments grow in strength over the coming years, they will have more funds to invest in providing basic services and infrastructure. Accordingly, MSDSP will continue to apply its resources to leverage contributions from the district or sub-district authorities to accelerate and improve the quality of projects that meet the expressed needs of communities. By investing in infrastructure development, MSDSP will support the growth of the local construction industry and related service providers and, over time, reduce its own participation in design work, procurement of materials and supervision of construction as the capacity of local agencies and the private sector grows to take its place.

Supporting the Private Sector
MSDSP’s support to the private sector is defined by one of its core strategic directions, which is to increase rural incomes and employment by strengthening the emerging private sector. This aim is achieved primarily by fostering micro and small-enterprises and facilitating access to business development services and capital. Within MSDSP, the Enterprise Development Unit (EDU) is responsible for facilitating this process, guided by two main pillars: first, to facilitate access to business development services through an enabling environment that enhances the “entrepreneurial culture” of target groups; and second, to facilitate access to capital and new technology in order to consolidate economic development.

MSDSP has defined agricultural processing and tourism as strategic areas for development, while offering support to other entrepreneurs who are themselves able to provide important business services absent in rural areas, such as the provision of internet and legal advice services. Currently, activities undertaken by the EDU are benefiting over 3,000 people in the local markets of which approximately 30 percent are women.

Two Pillars of the Enterprise Development Unit
The Enterprise Development Unit (EDU) also facilitates access to services through its Centers for Business Development Services (formerly known as Business Incubators) in partnership with local NGOs, international organisations and government. Through these providers, the EDU supports a wide range of integrated services, from facilitating access to technical training on production, to advice on marketing, business regulations and information on how to access know how and financial services.

Access to capital is an essential resource when starting or expanding a business and one that is in short supply in Tajikistan, especially in remote rural areas. As its second pillar, the EDU, within the frame of its new Three Year Strategy, will become a facilitator for entrepreneurs to get access to resources and credit through community-based groups. The EDU assists entrepreneurs in preparing and submitting project proposal to the right organisations such as VOs, SUDVOs, micro-leasing companies, international organisations, NGOs, micro-finance institutions, or banks.

Economic development projects such as this vegetable processing plant are supported by MSDSP to improve livelihood opportunities and generate income for men and women in rural areas.Strategic Areas for Support
MSDSP, through the EDU, is working to promote economic diversification in the GBAO, Rasht and Khatlon regions by encouraging businesses to develop new products and services that move beyond traditional areas like agriculture into value added industries such as fruit, vegetable and oilseed processing. Through agricultural processing, rural communities are able to preserve food during the winter months and bring more of their produce to markets, helping to raise food security and increase household income.

MSDSP is also supporting community-based eco-cultural tourism in GBAO. Through the newly established Pamir Eco-Cultural Tourism Association (PECTA), MSDSP is supporting rural tourism operators including home stay providers, tour guides and traditional craft-producers. In parallel, MSDSP is supporting the preservation of numerous archaeological sites in the region. These sites are important cultural assets for communities and critical to the region’s potential as a tourism destination.

MSDSP also sponsors cross-border markets between merchants in South-Central Tajikistan and those in North-East Afghanistan, which are among the most isolated regions of Central Asia. Communities located in these regions have limited access to the major commercial centres of their respective countries. Consequently, access to new markets can drastically increase the potential for income generating activities and improve the livelihoods for communities on both sides of the border.

In December 2006, the EDU obtained permission from local authorities to support Afghan women entrepreneurs to enter Tajikistan at Darvaz district in order to exchange ideas and lessons with their Tajik counter parts. A cross border market now operates weekly in three border communities along the Tajik-Afghan border every Saturday, where over 1000 traders congregate from both sides to buy and sell goods and services.

Supporting Natural Resource Management
MSDSP promotes agricultural diversification with the aim of improving livelihood opportunities, incomes and increasing levels of nutrition.Since its inception, MSDSP has been working to improve agricultural production and productivity in its programme areas. Achieving greater food security remains a principle focus of the Natural Resource Management Unit, which has been critical to the enhancement of rural incomes and levels of nutrition in the years after the Tajik Civil War

Today, MSDSP is shifting its focus from improved food security toward the facilitation of more sustainable land management practices and value adding activities. The MSDSP Three Year Strategy (2008-2010) describes the organisation’s strategic direction as the promotion of relevant good practices in natural resources management and sustainable agriculture through partnership with local communities, service providers and government structures. This will be achieved by promoting community-based resource management systems, facilitating better access to appropriate technologies and inputs and improving the conditions for market-based agriculture and related agricultural processing.

Sustainable Land Management
Tajikistan is an agrarian society and agriculture is critical to poverty reduction and economic growth. About twenty percent of the population lives in hilly and mountain areas where access to most government services is limited.

Rural poverty, shifts in land management responsibilities, lack of integrated land management, inappropriate agriculture and poor access to technical support are causing increasing land degradation. In turn, land degradation contributes to further impoverishment through mudslides (ruining villages, roads and farmland and irrigation and water systems), soil-erosion (undermining agricultural productivity) and silting of waterways used for drinking water and irrigation. Specific measures related to forestation, pasture improvements and protection and mainstreaming of sustainable land management and biodiversity conservation in agriculture and forestry are considered government priorities in Tajikistan as documented in the National Strategy for Combating Desertification (2002) and the National Biodiversity Conservation Action Plan (2003).

In order to address these issues, MSDSP is actively working to identify and promote good land management practices and resource conservation techniques. MSDSP is building linkages with national and international research agencies to identify potential innovative technologies suitable for the fragile mountain environments of its programme areas. In close cooperation with Tajik Agricultural Centres, new technologies and techniques are being tested, adapted and demonstrated by MSDSP in partnership with innovative farmers through a process of participatory technology development (PTD). Within this wider focus, the Natural Resource Management Unit within MSDSP is seeking to identify PTD practices that build ecological resilience into agricultural systems in order to develop coping mechanisms for farmers facing increasingly unpredictable climates.

Agricultural Extension
In partnership with the government, donor agencies and different local and international organisations in Tajikistan, MSDSP is facilitating the establishment, or further development where they already exist, of district level agricultural advice and training centres with outreach mechanisms at the local level. The training support provided to the advice centres by MSDSP is determined by the specific opportunities and needs which exist in each district. These activities are focused on the livestock and horticulture sectors (which includes orchards and vegetables) where the opportunities for adding value are greatest.

As the agricultural advice and training centres develop, they will be supported to incorporate associated issues of environmental sustainability in all extension services to promote awareness and adoption of ecological good practices in agriculture-related activities. To ensure that the needs of women, who engage in much of the agricultural work, are mainstreamed in programme activities, MSDSP will continue to actively promote the identification and provision of support for female members of the district advice and training centres.

Looking to the Future
Since 1993, MSDSP has constantly been adapting to its external environment, transforming from a relief agency into a development organisation. Currently, MSDSP is again shifting strategies to better meet the changing realities of the international environment and needs of the communities in which it works.

MSDSP has released a strategy document that outlines the organisational and programming changes that will occur from 2008 to 2010. During this process, MSDSP’s role within the local community will begin to change from a direct implementer of essential services to a facilitator which works through local government, civil society organisations and enterprises in the marketplace. This transition presents a major challenge for MSDSP and its staff and will require intensive internal learning, management training and mentoring to ensure MSDSP is fit for its new role as an enabler of development.

> Find out more on Rural Development Activities