Tajikistan to Receive $20 Million Kuwait Fund Loan for Schools

Tajikistan will receive concessional financing equivalent to about $20 million from the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development to implement an education-sector project. The funds will be used to build and equip schools in different regions of the country. According to Tajikistan’s Ministry of Finance, the agreement was signed in Vienna during a meeting between Finance Minister Faiziddin Qahhorzoda and Waleed Al-Bahar, acting director general of the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development. The parties signed a loan agreement for the School Development project, under which the fund will provide Tajikistan with a concessional loan of 6 million Kuwaiti dinars, equivalent to about $20 million. Additional financing of $4.5 million will be provided by the Government of Tajikistan. According to the Finance Ministry, the authorities expect the project to expand educational infrastructure and improve the quality of general education as the number of schoolchildren grows. The program includes the construction of new facilities and the provision of equipment for schools in a number of cities and districts across the country. In recent years, Tajikistan has sought international concessional financing for social infrastructure, including education and healthcare. It has also drawn financing for public utilities.