DUSHANBE, 04.11.2021 (NIAT Khovar) – Yesterday, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) marked its 60 anniversary. It was founded on November 3, 1961 by the administration of President John F. Kennedy with the aim of uniting several existing organizations and foreign aid programs under one agency, reports the US Embassy in Tajikistan.

For six decades, USAID has built its reputation as the world’s leader in international development by partnering with countries around the world to strengthen communities and improve lives. In more than 100 countries around the globe, USAID ’s team and partners work together on development and humanitarian projects that help save lives, reduce poverty, strengthen democratic governance, and improve health, education, and economic prosperity.

The USAID mission in Tajikistan marked this date together with the 30th anniversary of the agency’s involvement in the development of Tajikistan. USAID has supported Tajikistan since 1992, providing more than $650 million in assistance, and contributing to the development of the Tajik economy, public health and education.

Through Feed the Future, the U.S. government’s global hunger and poverty initiative, USAID/Tajikistan has helped farmers adopt healthy diets, and increase production of nutritious crops including through access to 39 new fruit varieties from the U.S. to revitalize their orchards and reach more profitable markets. Since the transition to a market economy, more than 120,000 farmers gained secure access to land and water as a result of USAID’s cooperation with the government of Tajikistan.

To develop cost-effective energy markets, USAID helps Tajikistan deploy the country’s rich renewable energy resources and build technical capacity of Tajik energy utility companies. In partnership with the Tajik government, USAID installed a 200-kilowatt solar power plant with battery energy storage in Murghob to supply electricity to remote communities. USAID’s support for innovative efforts within river basins demonstrates the benefits of a water-energy-agriculture nexus that increases resilience to climate-related risks.

In the health sector, USAID partners with the Ministry of Health and Social Protection of the Population to strengthen the healthcare system. Through the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a US government’s global initiative to fight HIV/AIDS, Tajikistan received nearly $38 million since 2003 to control the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

USAID also supports Tajikistan in the implementation of the National Tuberculosis (TB) Program by providing more effective and accessible TB prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. USAID introduced the shorter multi-drug resistant TB treatment regimen that reduced the treatment period from 24 to nine months. The first cohort of 324 patients fully recovered after completing the shorter treatment regimen. This more effective regimen is now part of the National TB protocol.

USAID’s maternal and child health, and nutrition services contributed to an overall decrease in malnutrition rates for children under five years of age, from 25 to 18 percent; a decrease in the rate of acute malnutrition from 11 to 6 percent in USAID target districts; and a decrease in infant mortality rates from 33 to 27 per 1,000 live births.

Since 2002, USAID has provided approximately $60 million in education assistance to Tajikistan. In partnership with the Ministry of Education and Science, USAID increased the availability of age-appropriate reading materials in the Tajik language and donated 1.3 million books to nearly 80 percent of schools nationwide. USAID printed and distributed 1,560 books in Braille and developed 61 audio books to help visually impaired students access quality learning materials. For the first time since 1991, Braille books were printed in Tajikistan. These and other interventions have contributed to improved quality of reading instruction and reading proficiency as evidenced in oral reading fluency improvement by 22 percent among fourth grade students.

To advance human rights, USAID worked with Tajik migrants. USAID helped protect migrant workers by raising awareness about safe migration with radio programs and video tutorials. As a result, migrants are better able to understand and abide by migration laws in destination countries, which decreases their vulnerability to human trafficking. Through a hotline service, USAID has provided 62,650 Tajik citizens with legal and psychological consultations. Four hundred migrant workers who were denied entry to Russia received social, educational and financial support, which helped them reintegrate in their home societies.

Since March 2020 USAID has provided more than $10.2 million to bolster Tajikistan’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The United States government, through USAID, has donated more than 1.8 million doses of the Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines. USAID assistance has served to improve laboratory systems and operations for testing, organize training for public health workers, provide laboratory and oxygen ecosystem equipment and supplies, train workers for port of entry screening, raise awareness through community engagement, create employment opportunities for displaced workers, and deliver food for the most vulnerable.

On September 28, 2020, Keith Simmons took up his duties as USAID Mission’s Acting Director in Tajikistan at the US Embassy in Dushanbe. The creation of a separate USAID mission in Tajikistan demonstrates the strengthening of the US’ partnership with the Tajik people and support for development throughout the country.

Mr. Simmons has over 40 years of international development experience with USAID, the US Department of State and the US Peace Corps. He has worked in Europe, Eurasia, Africa and Asia. His most recent assignment was with the USAID Mission to India, where he served as Mission Director.

Mr. Simmons’ arrival coincided with the launch of a number of new USAID projects worth about $ 100 million in agriculture and land management, water supply, education, health and nutrition in Tajikistan.