Tajikistan launches a project to support families of migrant workers who left to earn abroad

Almaty. July 13. Silkroadnews – This autumn Tajikistan is going to launch a $6-million-project to support the families of migrant workers who have left to work abroad, Tajik Telegraph Agency (TajikTA) reported on Wednesday.

“The issue of families of the migrants who left Tajikistan in search of job abroad will become an important direction of new $6-million project of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) scheduled for launch this autumn,” representative of FAO office in Tajikistan said.

It is noted the incomes of many of Tajik families are provided out of the migrants’ earnings from abroad. Typically, the money is spent, yet they do not have any additional income to live on. In the course of project realization, the funds in case are assumed to be directed to develop the agriculture sector.

“The migrants’ families will be proposed to develop small agricultural projects and apply for grants each up to $5 thousand. Each beneficiary family will raise funds both from their own resources and remittances from abroad”, the information explains.

Until recently the volume of remittances the Tajik migrant workers sent to their homeland amounted to $4 billion a year. With the Russian economic growth slowdown in 2015 this figure dropped to $1.2 billion.

The project is expected to contribute to strengthen food and agriculture management, improve coordination between the programs and strategies in food and nutrition security field, national social protection and education and health programs.

A 3-year project “Building capacity to strengthen food security and improve nutrition in countries of the Caucasus and Central Asia” is funded by the Russian government. Along with Tajikistan the project will also be implemented in Armenia and Kyrgyzstan.