DUSHANBE, October 8, 2011, Asia-Plus — UKAID from the Department for International Development (DFID) and Switzerland are supporting Focus Humanitarian Assistance (FOCUS) and Welthungerhilfe to reduce the risk of glacial lake outbursts to vulnerable communities of Tajikistan, FOCUS reported on October 7.
Home to tens of thousands of people, the isolated mountainous regions of Tajikistan are increasingly experiencing the impact of climate change, and this phenomenon is most evident in the mountainous glaciers which are melting at an alarming rate.
In an effort to help mitigate the risks associated with climate change in Tajikistan, including glacial lake outburst floods, FOCUS, an affiliate agency of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), in partnership with Welthungerhilfe (formerly German Agro-Action), the UK and Swiss Governments through DFID and SDC respectively, formally agreed to implement a project entitled: “Remote Geo-Hazards Capacity Building and Monitoring Project Phase 2.”
The Grant Signing Ceremony was held at the Ismaili Center Dushanbe, and was attended by the Ambassadors of the United Kingdom and Pakistan, the AKDN Resident Representative, the UN Resident Coordinator, the Head of the Government’s Department of Hydrometeorology, officials from the Committee of Emergency Situations and Civil Defense, the Department of Geology, and representatives from the Japanese and the Iranian Embassies, the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and other development agencies working in Tajikistan.
In his remarks, Mr. Mahmad Safarov, the Director of the Department of Hydrometeorology thanked DFID, SDC and FOCUS for the support and assistance provided to the people of Tajikistan. He stressed the importance of this Project to Tajikistan and towards building the capacity of the Department of Hydrometeorology and other Government implementing partners.
In his speech, Mr. Bill Kilby, Head of the Regional DFID Office in Dushanbe said: “Supporting this project is consistent with DFID’s global position on enhancing the resilience of communities to the effects of climate change.” And in particular he stressed that there is a strong emphasis on strengthening the capacity of local and national government staff in assessment, monitoring and response to glacial lake outburst flood risk.
Mr. Peter Mikula, the Country Director of Swiss Cooperation Office in Tajikistan, in his remarks stated that the success of this project is a great merit of all dedicated partners involved in its implementation, and extended his special appreciation to Mr. Mustafa Karim for his continuous commitment to work for the benefit of Tajik people.
DFID and Switzerland will contribute $956,000 and $ 942,000, respectively to implement this important and timely initiative. AKDN and Weltungerhilfewill also provide $163,000 US and $138,000 US respectively to help implement the project.
It is anticipated that the project will benefit over 55,000 members of the communities in Zarafshon Valley in Sughd province, Khatlon province, Gorno Badakhshan and Jirgatol district. Over the two-year implementation period, the project aims to enhance the awareness, preparedness, monitoring, and response capacities of these communities. In addition, the Project will further strengthen the emergency response capacity of various departments of the Government including; the Hydromet, Tajik Geology (Main Geology Directorate under the Government of Tajikistan) and the Committee for Emergency Situations and Civil Defense (CES) Information Management and Analytical Center.
