U.S. Ambassador to Tajikistan, Ken Gross, concluded his two-day trip to Rasht Valley, where he visited U.S. Government assistance programs, and spoke with local officials and civil society representatives about the economic situation and development needs in the region.
On November 3, Ambassador Gross visited a legal support center operated by the non-governmental organization (NGO) Samar and funded by the U.S. State Department. The project has its two branches in the neighboring districts of Jirgatol and Nurobod. These centers provide legal support to the local population through free consultation on legal issues, and free court representation. Also included in the project is training for local law enforcement authorities on international standards of interaction with criminal suspects, guaranteeing that human rights are observed.
On November 4, the Ambassador spoke with students and teachers of a U.S. State Department-supported English Language Access Microscholarship Program, which provides English language classes for students from low income families throughout the country. In Rasht Valley local NGO Marifatnoki leads the program, where currently 64 schoolchildren from vulnerable families and orphanages of the Rasht district learn English. Since 2007, the program has provided English classes to almost 100 children 14-16 years old through Marifatnoki.
This was followed by a monitoring visit to Tagoba, where the Ambassador observed food, health and agricultural assistance provided by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and implemented by the U.S. NGO Mercy Corps. The Ambassador oversaw the distribution of food to 383 women from two Tagoba communities. This was the final distribution of food aid under the 2009 program, which has provided yellow peas, wheat flour, and vegetable oil to pregnant women and mothers of children less than two years of age this year. Overall, the program assists 5,000 residents in 62 communities in the Rasht and Jirgatol Districts of the Rasht Valley. The program also works in Khatlon and is implemented there by the U.S. NGO Save the Children. The program goal is to reduce acute food insecurity for rural Tajikistan households through timely distribution of commodities and appropriate nutrition messaging.
The Ambassador also spoke with enthusiastic women who expressed their appreciation of lessons on agricultural topics, such as greenhouse production of tomatoes and cucumbers. These women shared the benefits of improved health knowledge with their families, bringing notable improvements in the hygiene of households and the health of pregnant & lactating women and their babies.
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