DUSHANBE, September 5, 2009, Asia-Plus — U.S. Chargé d’Affaires, Ms. Necia Quast, and Deputy Prime Minister, Mr. Murodali Alimardon, discussed recent successes in land reform at the closeout conference of the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Land Reform and Market Development Project II (LRMD II), press release issued by the U.S. Embassy on September 4 said.
Since 2003, the U.S. Government has been an active partner of the Government of Tajikistan, working to help strengthen land-related legislation and land policies with the aim of improving Tajikistan’s food security.
USAID addressed land issues through the LRMD II project by providing legislative drafting and land policy support, farmer education and legal assistance to farmers. The project helped create the Land Market Development Strategy, which has guided land reform efforts in Tajikistan. LRMD II assisted the Land Policy Working Group to draft proposed amendments to the Land Code that explicitly allow for the ownership of land-use rights for the first time in Tajikistan. Additionally, these amendments allow for the transfer of land-use rights between private parties without intervention by local authorities. The Government of Tajikistan plans to introduce amendments supporting a market in land-use rights for parliamentary approval.
Ms. Quast noted that these legislative reforms are “vital if we are to guarantee the freedom for farmers to produce the crops they want in the quantity they want and to sell those crops to whomever they choose without the consent or interference of state authorities. This freedom is the right of all farmers, and is a key step to sustainable prosperity and food security in Tajikistan.”
USAID educated farmers on their land rights through a LRMD II-supported network of six regional legal aid centers, which operated as hubs for 40 tashabbuskors (rural land activists). USAID used this extensive network to directly provide education, consultation and representation services to more than 49,000 citizens. In addition, the project produced and aired Your Right to Land, a series of nationally broadcasted radio and television programs, which covered topics such as settling land disputes, farm reorganization and Freedom to Farm legislation.
Since October 2008, more than 10,500 farmers have received direct legal assistance from USAID-supported legal aid centers. Of the 73 court cases carried out on behalf of farmers, 39 were decided in their favor, with 34 cases pending or on appeal. USAID-supported legal assistance helped 1,561 farmers in annulling more than TJS 8 million in improper debts.
LRMD II Chief of Party, Mr. Justin T. Holl, Jr., stated that “court cases have involved a wide range of issues, but the most important for dehqon (peasant) farms and farmers has been wrongfully imposed debt during farm reorganization. In many cases, a dehqon farm has been paying this debt and has been deprived of needed operating revenue. LRMD II’s success in high-profile debt cases has created positive spillover effects with more and more farmers seeking information and advice on their land rights.”
To meet farmers’ demand for information and legal services, USAID worked to increase the capacity and sustainability of local legal aid centers. The LRMD II project conducted training for legal aid centers on resolving land disputes in court, legal writing, business plan development, financial management and establishing fee-based services for farmers with the ability to pay. The launching of a new phase of USAID’s assistance for land reform is planned in the coming months.
The USAID Land Reform and Market Development Project II is one of many assistance projects implemented in Tajikistan by USAID on behalf of the American people. Since 1993, the American people, through USAID, have provided about $300 million in assistance programs that support the economic growth, democratic institutions, health care and education systems of Tajikistan.
