Tajikistan Business Economy - The Times Of Central Asia

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World Economic Forum Names Kazakhstan Best Tourism Destination in Central Asia

The World Economic Forum recently announced the Travel and Tourism Development Index for 2024. In this rating, the USA took first place, followed by Spain and Japan, which took second and third place respectively. France, Australia, Germany, Great Britain, China, Italy, and Switzerland completed the top ten. The Times of Central Asia has reviewed this report on the scale of Central Asian countries. When compiling the rating, 119 countries were considered in several categories: enabling environment, policy and condition, infrastructure and service, resources, and sustainability. In this rating, Kazakhstan takes 52nd place with a score of 4.07. Kazakhstan’s healthcare infrastructure, accessibility, and health security are rated at 5.98 points; it occupies 23rd place in this category. Another high indicator of the country is its socio-economic impact, in which Kazakhstan took 5th place. According to Kazakhstan's Ministry of Tourism, 1,084,800 foreign tourists visited the country in 2023. This is 156,800 more people than last year. “Our goal to develop the tourism sector in terms of quality is reflected in the rating improvement according to various criteria, including price competitiveness, quality of service, and socio-economic impact,” said Ermek Marjikpayev, minister of tourism and sports. Uzbekistan takes 78th place in the rating, up from 94th in 2019. The indicators' growth indicates that the country's tourism initiatives are gradually improving. Uzbekistan records relatively good indicators in terms of price competitiveness (25), safety and security (26), socio-economic impact (33), and demand sustainability (40). The lowest indicator is the prioritization of travel and tourism. Uzbekistan’s potential in this regard is estimated at 3.30, occupying 105th place. According to the Statistics Agency of Uzbekistan, 6.6 million tourists visited the country in 2023. During the year, citizens of the neighboring republics of Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan recorded the largest number of visits. The Central Asian countries record a good result in terms of price competitiveness. Tajikistan takes 10th place in this direction; its overall capabilities are estimated at 3.42 points, and it takes 99th place among 119 countries. We can also see that the country’s capabilities are relatively good in the categories of demand sustainability (21), safety, and security (33). The lowest results are non-leisure resources (113) and openness to travel and tourism (111). For reference, 1 million 256 thousand tourists visited Tajikistan in 2023, with 92.5% of them being citizens of the CIS. This is 20.2% more than in 2022. Kyrgyzstan recorded the lowest indicator in the region with 3.38 points, occupying 102nd place. Although its results are low compared to those of the other countries in the region, it ranks 11th in terms of price competitiveness. According to Nurgozi Toychuyev, the Kyrgyz representative for the economy ministry's tourism department, the republic's situation in the field of tourism is stable. “If we do not consider the coronavirus period, the number of tourists is increasing yearly. For example, at the end of 2023, Kyrgyzstan received 8 million 557 thousand foreign citizens,” he said.

Villagers in Tajikistan Building a Hospital With Their Own Funds

In the village of Kalai Dust in Tajikistan, locals have begun building a hospital on their own. Currently, there isn't even an outpatient clinic, and women go to a neighboring village to give birth, Radio Ozodi reports. Local entrepreneurs together with migrant workers from the village have already collected half of the sum of 8 million somoni required ($740,000). "According to the project, there will be 16 wards. Zoning is envisioned - on the lower floor there will be a maternity ward and on the second floor a children's hospital for children up to 12-years-old... [It's] on the initiative of our migrants working in Russia, thanks to them: they organized it," said Asliddin Tojizoda, a resident of the village. Residents hope that when the hospital is built, albeit at the expense of the villagers themselves, it will be fully transferred to the state and the authorities will provide it with the necessary specialists. The village needs doctors very badly. Approximately 30 hectares of land have been allocated for the hospital in a plot adjacent to the local school. According to some villagers, while people were collecting money, the local authorities gave part of the land for private construction; now, residents are trying to challenge the officials' decision and return the land to public use. They are filing a collective complaint against the district chairman.

Tajikistan To Reconnect To Central Asia’s Unified Energy System

Tajikistan will soon connect itself to Central Asia's unified energy system. The unified system for energy distribution was created in 1960, when the systems of Uzbekistan, southern Kyrgyzstan, northern Tajikistan and southern Kazakhstan's Shymkent junction were connected to work in parallel through 110- and 220-kV power lines. This system operated in isolation from the Soviet Union's general scheme. In 2003 Turkmenistan left the energy system, having decided that it was able to provide itself with electricity on its own. And in early November 2009, the entire southern part of the Tajik energy system was automatically de-energized due to a spontaneous shutdown of units at the Nurek HPP. Tajikistan and the south of Uzbekistan remained without electricity for a day. After that Uzbekistan announced its withdrawal from the energy "ring". After that Uzbekistan completely de-energized the lines connecting its energy system with the Tajik system. As a result, Tajikistan's energy system automatically remained isolated from the rest of the region. Thus, the system ceased to exist as such in 2009, but was recreated again in 2019. Currently, it includes Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan.

IFC to Support Central Asian Tech Startups With New Fund

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is allocating $5 million to a new fund that will be used to support technology startups in Central Asia, Gazeta.uz reports. IFC is reportedly investing in Sturgeon Emerging Opportunities, a new venture capital fund managed by Sturgeon Capital, a major venture capital investor in emerging markets. Sturgeon Emerging Opportunities will focus on supporting startup projects in areas such as fintech, business-to-business platforms, agri-tech, healthcare and education. The investment in Sturgeon is part of IFC's Startup Catalyst program, which aims to address financial challenges in undervalued venture capital ecosystems by investing in incubators, gas pedals and funds in emerging markets. "The fund will help start-up entrepreneurs to expand their businesses, improve operational efficiency and create long-term employment opportunities," the statement said. Besides investing in projects in Central Asia, the fund also intends to work in other emerging markets such as Egypt and Pakistan. Sturgeon Capital estimates that the IT startup market in these countries could generate nearly $300 million in annual digital revenue by 2030. However, startups in these countries are currently struggling to raise capital to launch and scale their products and services.

Tajikistan Abolishes Electricity Rationing

The end of a system of electrical power rationing was announced by Bakhtiyor Rakhmatzoda, deputy head of the Electric Distribution Networks Company in Tajikistan. In early March, after an abnormally warm winter, snow suddenly fell in the country, which almost immediately led to an accident at the Nurek Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP). As a result, the entire country was left without electricity, water and cell phone services for several hours, as reported by the Russian news portal, Sputnik. After the restoration of the power supply, a rationing system to limit energy use was introduced. In most districts, power for lighting was supplied only for two hours in the morning, and two hours in the evening. The authorities explained the rationing by pointing to the high consumption of electricity - which was logical due to the cold weather at the beginning of spring. They also noted that there was not enough water in the Nurek Reservoir. Now, all restrictions have been lifted, according to Rakhmatzoda. "The country's population has access to electricity 24 hours a day, and the limit is no longer in effect," he said. Still, residents of Tajikistan are complaining on social media about power outages not only in the regions, but also in Dushanbe. The blackouts in some districts were due to technical problems or repair work, the deputy head of the Electric Distribution Networks stated.

Tajikistan Faces Acute Shortage of Human Capital in Field of Land Reclamation and Irrigation

In Tajikistan, specialists are leaving the important sphere of land reclamation and irrigation due to low salaries. In the last five months alone, 1,000 employees of the Land Reclamation and Irrigation Department (LRID) in Sughd Province have quit their jobs. That could mean trouble for the agricultural sector sooner rather than later. As Asia-Plus reports, subordinate enterprises under the Land Reclamation and Irrigation Agency are among the main debtors to the tax authorities. Their debt at the beginning of the year is 83.8 million somoni ($7.7 million) - and more than 80 million also belongs to the energy sector. For the first quarter of 2024, the Agency's wage arrears amounted to about 1.7 million somoni. "This is primarily due to the fact that water users do not pay or delay payment for reclamation services. Today, the debt of water users amounts to 95.6 million somoni," according to the Soghd regional leadership. More than 5,600 people work in Tajikistan's land reclamation and irrigation sector. The average salary of employees is about 850 somoni per month ($78), and in the regions that salary hasn't been paid for months. Only during the irrigation season can employees of local water management organizations go to the fields and collect money for irrigation services rendered. Those proceeds often pay rank-and-file workers' salaries. In order to pay their employees, managers of local water management organizations let them use equipment (excavators, tractors, trailers, etc.) that's available in order to make money. There are 779 units of machinery of different brands on the balance sheet of the subordinate enterprises of the Agency, 350 of which are so outdated they are no longer suitable for use. The sad state of affairs in the Land Reclamation and Irrigation Agency and its subordinate organizations has become a key reason for the mass departure of employees As a consequence, the Agency is facing a crippling staff shortage, with some water pumping stations employing 5-6 people instead of the 18 needed. The department plans to increase salaries for its specialists - especially young personnel - at the expense of payments for water supply. However, most water consumers are also unable to pay for irrigation, thereby threatening the wage increases before they even begin - meaning both problems may yet persist in tandem.