DUSHANBE, January 24, Asia-Plus — Tajik MPs have endorsed the country’s draft national foreign-borrowing program projected for 2007-2009 and Tajikistan is going to borrow another nearly 1.5 billion dollars in coming years despite unsettled debts.
A regular sitting of the third session of the Majlisi Namoyandagon (Tajikistan’s lower chamber of parliament) of the third presided over by its chairman, Saydullo Khairulloyev, was held on January 24.
The draft national foreign-borrowing program projected for 2007-2009 was the major topic of the sitting. Finance Minister Safarali Najmuddinov presenting the draft program noted that Tajikistan intends to borrow $1.45 billion from various international financial institutions in the coming three years.
According to him, 513 million US dollars or 35.4 percent of this amount will go to developing Tajikistan’s energy sector, $199 million is expected to be spent on the agrarian sector, $36 million will be spent on the social security and implementation of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP), and $32 million will be used for enhancement of municipal economy. “Health and education will receive $51 million each,” the minister said.
Member of the Majlisi Namoyandagon Committee on Energy, Industry and Construction Shodi Shabdolov telling the session pointed to the necessity of tightening control over of spending of loans. He also noted that loans provided for rehabilitation of the water supply system in Dushanbe and reconstruction of the road Shagon-Zighar have been assimilated very slowly.
The session also endorsed the prognosis of the main directions of Tajikistan’s monetary policy in 2007.
