Page 781 – The Times Of Central Asia

13 Apr 2024

Central Asia, Home, Life & Culture, Kyrgyzstan Life & Culture, Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan Features

Kyrgyzstan Battles Misinformation about Vaccines as Measles Cases Rise

June 28, 2024
By Times of Central Asia

Dear parents! Vaccinate your child.

That’s the message from the health ministry in Kyrgyzstan, where the number of reported measles cases this year has soared to nearly 8,000 despite government efforts to overcome the anti-vaccine sentiment fueling the outbreak.

“It has been proven that there is no connection between vaccinations and autism!” Kyrgyzstan’s health ministry said this month on Facebook. The announcement cited British and American medical studies in the last few decades that it said confirm “there is no biological link between vaccination and morbidity.”

Despite the campaign, at least 7,864 cases of measles have been reported in the Central Asian country as of April 8, according to the Republican Center for Immunoprophylaxis, a health ministry organization that oversees vaccinations. The 24.kg news agency reported “intense circulation” of the virus that causes measles in Bishkek, Chui and Jalal-Abad regions.

In December, UNICEF said cases of measles in Europe and Central Asia had skyrocketed by 3000 percent in 2023, in comparison to the previous year, and that a backsliding in vaccine coverage was responsible. It said Kazakhstan had the highest rate of measles cases, though officials there reported in March that cases were in decline after a successful vaccination drive. Kyrgyzstan had the second highest rate at the time.

“A decrease in vaccine demand – in part fuelled by misinformation and mistrust which worsened during and following the COVID-19 pandemic, disruption to health services and weak primary health care systems are some of the contributing factors,” the U.N. agency said.

Nine children died from measles in Kyrgyzstan in 2023, according to the government.

The Health Ministry says “myths” about vaccines include the belief that they contain dangerous preservatives; Europe is testing new drugs by sending them to Kyrgyzstan as humanitarian aid; and that it’s better to let a child get sick and develop natural immunity rather than get the shot.

Measles, which is highly contagious, infects the respiratory tract and then spreads around the body. The vaccine, the World Health Organization says, is safe and effective.

12 Apr 2024

Central Asia, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Tajikistan Business Economy, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan Business & Economy, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan Business & Economy, Kazakhstan Business & Economy

ADB Forecasts Faltering Economic Growth

June 28, 2024
By Times of Central Asia

The People’s Republic of China (PRC) will remain the engine of growth for the world economy, even despite some slowdown. That forecast has been made by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) specialists in their report, Asian Development Outlook.

Inflation is expected to decline in 2024 and 2025 after the increase in food prices in many countries over the past two years – and developing economies in the Asia-Pacific region will grow by an average of 4.9%, according to the ADB. Experts predict the highest economic growth for India: where the economy will grow by 7% this year and 7.2% next year. As for China, experts are more reserved in their forecasts: China’s growth will slow to 4.8% this year and 4.5% next year.

“Obviously, China will play an important role for some time to come. It still accounts for almost half of the GDP [gross domestic product] in the Asia-Pacific region,” said ADB chief economist ,Albert Park. At the same time, economists also warned of possible risks: supply chain disruptions, uncertainty over U.S. monetary policy, the effects of extreme weather, and volatility in the PRC’s real estate market.

Inflation in developing Asia-Pacific economies is expected to fall to 3.2% this year and 3% next year as global price pressures ease and monetary policy remains tight in many countries. However, inflation in the region, with the exception of China, is still higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the bank’s forecasts, economic growth in Uzbekistan will slow this year and grow slightly next year. This is because higher state-regulated prices will limit the growth of real household incomes, thus reducing demand. Economists expect a lower growth in services and agriculture.

Lower remittances, fiscal space constraints, and lower global demand for Tajikistan’s main exports will cause Tajikistan’s economic growth to slow slightly in 2024 and 2025, the ADB said. “Tajikistan faces serious climate challenges and risks that could lead to irreversible economic, social, and environmental damage,” said the ADB ‘s resident representative in Tajikistan, Shanny Campbell. The ADB says developing a green economy is key to the country’s sustainable growth.

As for its nearest neighbor, Kazakhstan, the ADB has lowered its GDP growth forecast for 2024 to 3.8%, down from 4.3% in the previous review. In 2025, the figure is expected to be 5.3%. Actual GDP growth at the end of 2023 was at 5.1%. “The growth rate of Kazakhstan’s economy in 2024 will decrease against the background of slowdown in industrial growth due to stagnation in oil production and then recover in 2025 due to the growth of resource extraction at the Tengiz field and investments. Prospects for Kazakhstan’s economic growth in the medium term look positive,” ADB analysts said.

As for developed economies globally, their growth will slow down this year: GDP growth in the U.S. will fall to 1.9% from last year’s 2.5%, and in Japan, GDP will grow by 0.6% compared to 1.9% in 2023.

12 Apr 2024

Central Asia, Tajikistan International Affairs, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan Business Economy, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan Business & Economy, Uzbekistan International Affairs

Tajik Institute Hosts Conference on Furthering Cooperation With Uzbekistan

June 28, 2024
By Times of Central Asia

An international conference called Uzbekistan and Tajikistan: New Perspectives of Strategic Partnership and Alliance is being held in Dushanbe on April 12, in cooperation with the International Institute of Central Asia and the Center for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, according to a report by UzA. According to this report, current relations between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan have reached a stage of rapid development. Mutually beneficial cooperation in the political, trade-economic spheres, and cultural-humanitarian connections are expanding.

The amount of cross-border bilateral trade has increased more than threefold since 2017, and in the coming years is expected to reach $1 billion annually.

The main goal of the ongoing conference is to discuss the prospects for further development of the bilateral partnership, as well as to develop practical proposals for expanding cooperation in the fields of trade and industry, transport, ecology and water use, agriculture, and education.

Participants include representatives from the two country’s top research and analytical centers, and from ministries and agencies. Additionally, as part of the Uzbek delegation’s visit to Dushanbe, bilateral meetings are scheduled at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Institute of Economics and Demography of the Institute for the Study of the Problems of Asian and European Countries of the National Academy of Sciences of Tajikistan, and the Center for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan.

12 Apr 2024

Central Asia, Home, Kazakhstan Local Politics, Kazakhstan Justice, Kazakhstan Life & Culture, Kazakhstan

Fringe Kazakh Politicians Propose Prison Terms for Supporters of LGBT Rights

September 25, 2024
By Times of Central Asia

A fringe group of Kazakh politicians are in favor of imprisoning people for supporting LGBT rights and freedoms. Members of parliament Yedil Zhanbyrshin and Samat Musabayev are proposing an amendment to Article 174 of Kazakhstan’s Criminal Code, which ostensibly concerns the ‘incitement of discord’. Their idea, reports Tengrinews.kz, is to add the phrase: “including by propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations.”

The penalties for violating this article range from fines of between $16,200 and $57,500, to a prison term of up to seven years.

Zhanbyrshin and Musabayev claim that in Kazakhstani society, a traditional family means a man and a woman, and their children — including adopted children. In turn, however, members of the Mazhilis (lower house of parliament) have emphasized that the word family, according to the law “On Marriage (Matrimony) and Family,” relates to a circle of persons bound by property and personal non-property rights, and obligations arising from marriage.

Two other members of the Mazhilis, Askhat Aimagambetov and Zhanarbek Ashimzhanov, from the Amanat Party, have proposed a ban on the media mentioning LGBT people, and to close or suspend any outlet that did. This amendment was also included in the draft law “On Mass Media,” which is currently under consideration.

12 Apr 2024

Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan Local Politics, Kyrgyzstan Business & Economy

20,000 Families in Kyrgyzstan to Receive $1,100 Each for Entrepreneurship

June 28, 2024
By Times of Central Asia

Low-income families who receive cash benefits from the state will now be able to sign a social contract with the state – as long as recipients have a real business plan, according to a report by the Ministry of Labor, Social Security and Migration of Kyrgyzstan.

As part of the fight against poverty in 2024, 20,000 families will enter a social contract with the state. According to the Ministry of Labor, priority will be given to those with three or more children or people with disabilities. The ministry emphasized that the money can also be allocated to families for the development of existing businesses. Businesses will need to comply with the state program, “One Village – One Product.”

“It is supposed to produce from local resources, develop skills of producers in terms of business management, marketing and expanding opportunities for product sales, promoting products in local and international markets, creating local brands and increasing the value of products,” the Ministry of Economy and Commerce stated in describing the program.

The “One Village – One Product” project has been underway in the Issyk-Kul region for many years and is showing good results. New jobs are being created and the region is seeing increased profits, including from exporting products abroad. Previously, this project was supported by Japanese humanitarian organizations working in Kyrgyzstan.

“The project helps domestic entrepreneurs to produce quality certified products exclusively from local resources. Over the last six years, thanks to the project, local producers have signed 167 export contracts totaling 238 million som,” ($2,670,000) the Ministry of Economy emphasized. The Ministry of Labor, in turn, said that over the past few years it has allocated money to 13,000 low-income families who have opened their own businesses. The project produces honey, natural juices and jams from local fruits, felt products, as well as meat products.

“Income from the realization of business projects in 2023 helped to improve the lives of 55,400 people, of which 33,500 are children. Eighty percent of these children previously received a need-based allowance… Now, thanks to the Social Contract program, all families earn their own income and do not need government support,” the Minister of Labor, Social Development and Migration, Gulnara Baatyrova said. According to the ministry, the majority of successfully implemented projects were in the Jalal-Abad and Osh regions.

According to the Ministry of Economy and Commerce, 280 products have been developed over five years that are successfully sold in domestic and foreign markets. Many of these entrepreneurs’ products, although not yet produced in large volumes, are supplied to Japan, China, South Korea, the U.S. and Europe.

12 Apr 2024

Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan Business & Economy

Kyrgyz Still Suffering From Ban on Russian Bank Cards

September 26, 2024
By Times of Central Asia

The head of Kyrgyzstan’s cabinet of ministers, Akylbek Japarov, has told media that it wasn’t his decision to terminate the interbank agreement with Russia’s MIR payment system. According to him, the Interbank Processing Center (IPC) that services the Kyrgyz payment system Elkart — which previously had a contract with the Russian MIR system — does not belong to the government, but rather is run by commercial banks. He added that Kyrgyz authorities learned of the system’s disconnection only after it occurred.

Japarov commented: “Even the National Bank does not have control over the MPC, which is more than 54 percent owned by commercial banks. I assume that these commercial banks may have feared sanctions… It would be good if the MPC coordinated this issue with the cabinet, because there are more than a million of our citizens in Russia. All of them used the MIR card.”

Japarov emphasized that while Kyrgyz citizens benefited from MIR’s presence in Kyrgyzstan, the closure of the system will have almost no effect on Russians. He said that work is already underway to find alternatives.

On April 5 the IPC informed the Kyrgyz public about the shutdown of MIR “in order to minimize [the risk of] secondary sanctions” by the United States. Many travel companies in Kyrgyzstan have sounded the alarm — about 90% of all tourists coming to Kyrgyzstan are from Russia.