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Russian news agency TASS is reporting that, according to the Statistics Agency under the President of Tajikistan, trade between Tajikistan and Russia has exceeded $1.1 billion in 2024 so far. During the first seven months of 2024, the trade volume between the two countries was 12.1% more than in the same period of 2023. Russia continues to be Tajikistan’s largest trade partner, and also accounted for 26.7% of all imports entering the country during this period. In terms of bilateral trade, China remains in second place, with turnover to and from Tajikistan of almost $1 billion. Rather surprisingly, Switzerland has now became Tajikistan's leading export partner. In the first seven months of 2024, Tajikistan sent 26.6% of its products to Switzerland. In January-July of this year, the trade volume between the two countries amounted to more than $641 million, and compared to the same period in 2023, it increased almost 110 times.
Tajikistan's Sipar Group plans to significantly expand the production of armored vehicles and special equipment at its plant in the city of Tursunzade. The project is being implemented with a foreign investment of $15 million, allowing the company to produce 17 types of special vehicles. The plant is already actively developing its production capacity. The enterprise assembles military and civilian vehicles using components from the United Arab Emirates. Tajikistan's Minister of Industry and New Technologies, Sherali Kabir, said that armored vehicles in Tursunzade are manufactured using Canadian technologies; therefore, they are in no way inferior to their counterparts produced in other Central Asian countries. So far, the plant has produced a limited volume of vehicles, but given the demand, it plans to increase its production capacity significantly in the coming years. The project will also create more than a hundred new jobs, which will make an important contribution to the region's economic development. The plant's products are aimed not only at the domestic market, but also with the possibility of exporting to other Central Asian countries in mind, which would allow Tajikistan to strengthen its position in the international arena in the defense industry.
As reported by the Avesta Information Agency, Minister of Finance of Tajikistan, Faiziddin Kahkhorzade, and Shani Campbell, the permanent representative of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in the country, have signed contracts for two grants totaling $71 million. The first grant of $50 million is aimed at improving Tajikistan's business environment, including digitization, reforms to boost exports, improved infrastructure management, and increased financial transparency. Small and medium-sized enterprises will also be supported in adapting to climate change. The second grant of $21 million will replace the fourth unit at the Head HPP located near the city of Levakant (formerly Sarband) in Tajikistan's Khatlon region, which failed in 2019. As a result of the upgrade, the installed capacity of hydropower is expected to increase from 240 megawatts in 2012 to 274 megawatts by 2026. Since Tajikistan became a member of the ADB in 1998, the bank has provided more than $2.6 billion in assistance to the country, including more than $2 billion in grants. These funds were directed to the development of transport and energy infrastructure, healthcare, education, agriculture, and other important sectors of the economy.
Tajikistan's Deputy Minister for Finance, Yusuf Majidi, has announced that the World Bank will consider financing the development of the Rogun hydroelectric power plant. According to him, the bank can allocate $650 million for this project in September this year. $250 million has been allocated as preferential loans; starting in 2025, the station's construction will be financed by other investments. Majidi specified that the construction of the hydroelectric power plant (HPP) is also financed by the Islamic Development Bank and Arab funds; according to preliminary data, this is about $550 million. When the Rogun HPP reaches full capacity, about 70% of the electricity produced will be exported to other Central Asian countries. According to the Eurasian Fund for Stabilization and Development (EFSD), financing the Rogun HPP is one of the main risks to Tajikistan’s budget and debt sustainability. The EFSD notes that a possible increase in the cost of hydropower construction could reduce funding for other critical infrastructure projects and social spending. Rogun is located 110km from Dushanbe on the Vakhsh River, and is the largest in the region. Its construction began in 1976, but it was destroyed after the collapse of the USSR. Later, Tajikistan continued work on the construction of hydroelectric power plants at its own expense and with the help of international funds and organizations, and so far, two of the six units with a capacity of 600 MW provided for in the project have been put into operation. The third is scheduled for 2025.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has instigated an Alliance of Currency Transactions to increase the share of settlements in national currencies—the Kazakh tenge, the Russian ruble, and the Chinese yuan—in mutual trade between SCO member states. The main goal of the initiative, launched in Qingdao based on the Demonstration Zone of Regional Trade and Economic Cooperation within the framework of the SCO Capital Park, is to reduce dependence on the US dollar and the euro in international settlements and in turn, strengthen the economic independence of the organization's member countries and increase the stability of their financial systems. In addition, the Alliance will help simplify currency transactions, accelerate cross-border payments, and create a more transparent and efficient financial infrastructure between the SCO member countries. The initiative reflects the general move towards strengthening economic cooperation within the organization, including China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, India, Pakistan, Iran, and Belarus. As previously reported, the SCO states are increasing the use of national currencies in mutual settlements. The creation of the Alliance was a step in the development of regional financial integration, and its launch underscores the growing interest of SCO countries in using their currencies in foreign economic activity.
On August 9, Ministers of Energy of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan agreed to a plan to test overhead lines, transformers, and substations prior to launching the Central Asia-South Asia (CASA-1000) electricity transmission project, scheduled for completion by the end of 2024. The construction of a 500 kV transmission line with a length of 456 kilometers is now nearing completion in Kyrgyzstan. All of the supports have been installed and 428 km of the 456 km of the transmission line have been strung. The remaining section will be finished before the end of August 2024. The CASA-1000 project aims to connect the energy systems Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan with those of Afghanistan and Pakistan and through the new infrastructure, transport 1,300 megawatts of surplus electricity from Central Asia to high-demand electricity markets in South Asia. With spring and summer rainfall and significant water flow from the mountains, hydropower-rich Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan produce surplus electricity during the summer. At the same time, neighboring South Asia, Afghanistan and Pakistan experience chronic electricity shortages, especially during the summer months. By connecting the four countries through a shared electricity transmission system, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan can sell clean hydropower-produced surplus electricity in the summer months to Afghanistan and Pakistan.
