DUSHANBE, July 12, 2016, Asia-Plus — The families of migrants who have left Tajikistan in search of work abroad will be an important focus of a new FAO project set to get under way here soon.
According to the FAO Tajikistan Country Office, the three-year project, entitled Developing Capacity for Strengthening Food Security and Nutrition in Selected Countries of the Caucasus and Central Asia, is financed by the Russian Federation with a budget of US$ 6 million. As part of a global and regional program, also active in Armenia and Kyrgyzstan, the project will integrate food security and nutrition governance, nutrition-sensitive social protection, nutrition education, and nutritional health into a comprehensive food and nutrition security strategy.
“The income of many households in Tajikistan comes from migrants’ earnings abroad,” said FAO Representative in Tajikistan Viorel Gutu. “Money mainly is being spent and there is no additional income for migrants’ families. We intend to turn this situation into a positive one and designate this money for agricultural development.”
Migrants’ households will be invited to propose small agricultural projects and apply for grants with a value up to US$ 5,000. Each beneficiary household will contribute matching funds from its own resources, including remittances from abroad.
Until recently, Tajik labor migrants were transferring up to US$ 4 billion annually to their home country. With the economic slowdown in Russia, that figure fell to about US$ 1.2 billion in 2015.
Expected to get under way in autumn 2016, the project will also help build the capacities of policy-makers, government officials and professionals in the field of food and agriculture. Another objective is to improve coordination between programs and policies for food security and nutrition, national social protection, and education and health programs.
