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Books on Tajikistan
REPUBLICAN REFERENCE
Area (sq.km)
143,100
Population
7,011,556
Principal
ethnic groups
Tajiks 62.3%
Uzbeks 23.5%
Russians 17.6%
Capital
Dushanbe
Currency
Tajik Somoni
President
Emomali Rakhmonov
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Update No: 305 - (30/05/06)
The annual address of the president
President Emomali Rahmonov is in a quandary. His country is one of the poorest
in Eurasia. He cannot possibly deliver a new life for his people in short order,
much as he would like to.
A major problem is that officials feather their own nest only too cleverly. The
well of public corruption and chicanery of every kind is only too deep.
On April 20th, he presented his annual address to the Tajik people at a joint
session of both chambers of the Tajik parliament. He initiated the adoption of a
new law to deal with this grave matter, involving an amnesty for those who own
up to their misdemeanours.
"How is it possible to speak about transparency of the ministries'
activities, when some of our ministries became family businesses, after a new
minister has been appointed? Go around the streets of Dushanbe! You will see how
many villas are being built, and the majority of them belong to officials, being
registered under the names of their relatives. One may ask, where is the money
for construction of such villas and palaces coming from?" said Rahmonov.
Rahmonov recommended the following advice to all officials and entrepreneurs of
the republic, to declare their incomes in proper time without fear and to pay
their taxes. Also, he warned that if incomes are not declared before a certain
deadline, a thorough checking of the activities of all officials will be
conducted.
Safety first
His own life is not exactly tranquil. He has been in personal danger more than
once, and that explains the attention he is now paying to security.
Rahmonov handpicked the Russian military for neighbours a year before the
international agreement between Tajikistan and Russia made "the
Window" (electronic centre of the Space Force) the property of Russia. It
was near this electronic centre that Rahmonov had his new luxurious pine-tree
dacha built.
The dacha is located barely 800 or 900 metres from the classified Russian
military camp. Monitoring airspace above the Commonwealth, it is guarded by
special forces of the Russian army. Both the cantonment with Russian military
telescopes and Rahmonov's dacha are situated on a small plateau surrounded by
nearly impassable gorges.
Iran-Tajikistan relations
President Rahmonov visited Astana in early May and invited President
Nazarbayev to visit Tajikistan. But these are old allies.
Rahmonov has said that a new chapter has opened in Iran-Tajikistan ties, a more
unusual departure. He made the remarks in the annual speech already mentioned to
representatives of the Upper Chamber (National Assembly) of the parliament,
adding that the two sides are now experiencing deep and friendly ties.
Given the cultural, historical and linguistic affinities between the two
countries, he said implementation of the Anzab tunnel in the north of Tajikistan
and construction of a hydro-electric power plant nearby by Iran are among the
new political and economic chapters which have opened up.
The downfall of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan prepared the ground for
expansion of ties among countries in the region, especially those sharing a
common language (i.e. Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan), he said adding that the
construction of the international Mashhad-Herat-Dushanbe road would further
enlarge road communications between these countries.
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Electronic directory of Central Asian think tanks launched
at the Central Asian Gateway portal
The Electronic directory, launched at the Central Asian Gateway
www.cagateway.org portal, presents information on think tanks in Kazakstan,
Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, active in the issues of
socio-economic and political development in the Central Asian countries.
The main aim of this web-resource is to support interaction between researchers,
governments and international organizations through enhanced access to existing
research capacities in the region and involving them into conducting research
studies and developing policy advice.
The think tanks database will be constantly updated. The website users will be
able to get access to information in the main areas of work, partners,
publications, and contact information of the institutions presented in the
e-directory. Besides, users have an opportunity to submit information on any
other think tank in the Central Asian countries using the on-line form.
The Central Asian Gateway project aims at facilitating regional development and
integration in Central Asia and is being jointly implemented by the Centre for
Economic Research (Uzbekistan), AKIpress Information Agency (Kyrgyz Republic)
and Asia Plus Agency (Tajikistan) with support from the UNDP Regional Bureau for
Europe and CIS (Bratislava, Slovakia).
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ENERGY
WB to help Tajikistan appraise Rogun power plant
The World Bank is to select an independent company to examine infrastructure at
Rogun hydroelectric plant in Tajikistan and choose the type of dam, Russian
Aluminium RusAl and the Tajik energy ministry said in a joint press release.
"In accordance with agreements, to appraise incomplete construction by the
company Lahmeyer, and also the draft parameters of a feasibility study prepared
by TashGidroproyekt in 2000 and the parameters proposed by Lahmeyer, an
independent company, recommended by the World Bank, will be invited," the
press release said. RusAl agreed in 2004 to invest more than one billion Euro to
build the power plant on the Vakhsh River, 120 kilometres east of the Dushanbe
but insists on a concrete one. Tajikistan had long sought an investor to
complete construction that was interrupted by a five-year civil war in the
mid-1990s. RusAl said that designs of the construction should be built more
cheaply and quickly, which will meet modern engineering and safety standards,
New Europe reported.
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