DUSHANBE, September 21, 2012, Asia-Plus — Erin Elizabeth McKee, Regional Mission Director of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Central Asia, visited Tajikistan for her final visit before departing the region, the U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe said.
Ms. McKee and the new USAID Country Director in Tajikistan, Kathleen McDonald, reportedly attended a ceremony inaugurating a new solar water heating system at an orphanage #4 in Dushanbe. The project was completed by USAID”s Energy Efficiency Project in collaboration with the Regional Environmental Center for Central Asia and the Dushanbe City Administration, and exemplifies the potential of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies to meet the needs of urban residential areas.
Ms. McKee also joined Nematjon Buriyev, the Senior Advisor to the President of Republic of Tajikistan for Economic Policy who was there in thanking the participants of the Local Development Initiative, which has been focused on improving potable water and solid waste management services over the past three years.
Over the past three years, USAID built 57 drinking water systems throughout Tajikistan, providing 191,000 people with access to clean drinking water.
Finally, Ms. McKee attended an event recognizing the USAID Quality Learning Project, which in coordination with the Ministry of Education and its affiliates, focused on improving school programs, teachers training, as well as updating and promoting new educational materials. USAID is committed to improving education in Tajikistan, and will complement this project with a new two-year Reading for Children program for preprimary education. Expressing her gratitude to the Tajik Government, Ms. McKee stated, “Mutual collaboration and support have made our projects successful, and have helped to promote a stable and prosperous future for all.”
Since 1992, the American people have provided more than $984 million in programs that support Tajikistan’s education, democratic institutions, health care and economic growth.
