By government’s decree issued on January 21 Dilshod Ismatullozoda, who had previously served as deputy head of President’s Executive Office, has been appointed to head the Tajik national air carrier, Tajik Air, replacing Khairullo Rahimov, according to the Tajik president’s official website.
Khairullo Rahimov had served as Director-General of Open Joint-Stock Company (OJSC) Tajik Air since January 27, 2016.
Dilshod Ismatullzoda was born in the city of Kulob in 1971. He graduated from the Russian Academy of Economics in 1993.
According to his bio data posted on the president’s website, Ismatullozoda had worked with international organizations and in the country’s banking system for twenty years.
From 2008 to 2012, he served as head of the Roghun HPP investment department, director of Joint-Stock Company (JSC) Tajikkhimprom and then as the Roghun HPP director for financial issues.
From 2012 to 2015, Dilshod Ismatullozoda was member of Tajikistan’s lower house (Majlisi Namoyandagon) of parliament (Majlisi Oli).
Ismatullozoda is married with three children.
Recall, Tajik national air carrier, Tajik Air, has actually suspended it operations stopping flights practically on all air routes. Experts say it can be ruled out that the company will be declared bankrupt with further handover to private hands.
A state commission was set up to investigate the current condition of the airline. The commission is presided over by Prime Minister Qohir Rasoulzoda.
The national airline has experienced great financial difficulties since the end of the zero years. Specialists of the airline say that in such conditions the carrier turned out to be due to high prices for jet fuel and the unstable economic situation.
On September 25, 2018, the government issued the resolution approving the Special Program of State Support for Tajik Air Open Joint-Stock Company for 2018-2023 that was developed by the Supervisory Board.
Attached to the program is an Action Plan, which consists of 11 items. One of the main points of the Action Plan is to instruct the State Committee on Investments and State-owned Property Management, the Civil Aviation Agency and the airline itself to draw up and submit proposals on attracting investments through the privatization of the Tajik Air stake. It means that the government that owns all 100% of Tajik Air shares is ready to transfer the shares of the national air carrier to private hands.
