DUSHANBE, July 19, 2016, Asia-Plus – The newly-appointed United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Resident Representative in Tajikistan, Amelia Hannaford, yesterday met here with the head of the Drug Control Agency (DCA) under the President of Tajikistan, Sherkhon Salimzoda.
In the course of the talks, Salimzoda reportedly briefed Hannaford on the drug control initiatives of the Government of Tajikistan, activities of the Tajik counternarcotics agency, current drug situation in Tajikistan and the region, implementation of the UNODC projects in Tajikistan, and the situation on the Tajik-Afghan border.
The two also discussed cooperation between the Tajik counternarcotics agency and the Afghan interior ministry in combating drug trafficking and carrying out joint operations.
UNODC presence in Central Asia began in 1993 with the establishment of the UNODC Regional Office for Central Asia in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Today there are Program Offices in all five Central Asian States and Azerbaijan.
With a traditional emphasis on building capacity in counter-narcotics through technical assistance, UNODC activities in the region link national projects on border control with regional projects developing intelligence analysis systems and joint operations. These include: the Central Asia Regional Information and Coordination Center in Almaty; precursor chemical control; border liaison office project; national drug control agencies; and intelligence lead policing. All this work is carried out in close cooperation with national and international partners and donors.
UNODC”s relationship with Tajikistan stretches back to the late 1990”s with collaboration on the establishment of the national counternarcotics agency, and through furthering the operational capacity of the Tajik border forces. The current relationship largely focuses on these linked issues, with the aim of supporting law enforcement, capacity building, providing policy and legislation advice to Government institutions, and reducing the spread of drugs.
