TURKMENISTAN: LIMITED EMPLOYMENT/EDUCATIONAL

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 000928

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR SCA/CEN, EEB
TREASURY FOR BAKER/LANIER

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON SOCI SCUL TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: LIMITED EMPLOYMENT/EDUCATIONAL
OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

REF: A. ASHGABAT 0704

B. ASHGABAT 0812


1. (U) Sensitive but unclassified. Not for public Internet.


2. (SBU) SUMMARY: Young people graduating from Turkmenistan's
system of secondary education, as well as those who
participated in exchanges, are often frustrated by too few
opportunities for employment or advancement to higher
education. Very restrictive university entry requirements
(including the need to speak fluent Turkmen),the lack of
employment opportunities, and the need for government
connections to get a job are forcing many families to seek
futures for their children outside of Turkmenistan. END
SUMMARY.

FEW EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND LOW WAGES


3. (SBU) Employment opportunities are few and far between,
especially for students coming straight out of secondary
school and from foreign universities. The need to speak
fluent Turkmen and low-paying wages force some of the best
and brightest young people, returning from top foreign
universities, to accept work way below their skill level.
For example, one individual currently works for a U.S.-based
non-profit organization in a field unrelated to his
undergraduate and graduate degrees rather than deal with the
extremely low wages and bureaucratic rules for promotion for
teachers in local schools and universities. In order to
qualify for promotion from a base salary as a music teacher,
he would have to work for a minimum of five years as an
entry-level teacher with a salary that, on average, ranges
from $175 to $211 a month. New graduates often face the
choice between working in their field or making an adequate
living. This is further complicated by the fact that jobs
are difficult to find under most circumstances.


4. (SBU) Doctors face similar problems. In many instances,
they choose to leave Turkmenistan for other countries,
especially Russia, or apply for more lucrative positions in
other lines of work, when available. There is more than one
local employee at the EMBASSY who was trained as a doctor,
some even in specialty fields, who can make more money
working in GSO than at a local hospital. One local
employee's brother moved to Russia to start an Ear, Nose, and
Throat practice, because he could not make enough money as a
doctor in Turkmenistan.

MANY STUDENTS CANNOT QUALIFY FOR TURKMEN UNIVERSITIES


5. (SBU) There is great demand for admission into
Turkmenistan's institutions of higher learning, because
students are guaranteed jobs upon graduation. In order to
get into a university or institute, the student has to meet
the "real" admissions requirements as well as any academic
qualifications. Students need to know someone to get into
the school, and bribes remain common and costly.
Furthermore, students are required to speak fluent Turkmen in
order to qualify for admission, which poses a hurdle for many
non-ethnic Turkmen students. Each year there are
approximately 110,000 secondary school graduates who compete
for approximately 6,500 slots for admission to local Turkmen
universities and intergovernmental programs to study abroad
in Russia, Turkey, China, and Malaysia.


6. (SBU) Many parents, especially those that are not ethnic
Turkmen, speak of their frustration and the need to send
their children to other countries in order to attain a
post-secondary education, primarily because of the language
requirement for admission. And there are some ethnic Turkmen
families that feel more comfortable using Russian. Since
Russian-language classes (coursework taught in Russian) in
schools have a better reputation for educating students,

ASHGABAT 00000928 002 OF 002


parents try to get their children into these classes.
(COMMENT: It is very difficult for children with two Turkmen
parents to get into the Russian-language classes.
Nevertheless, parents are willing to pay bribes so that their
children can get in those courses. END COMMENT.) Despite
the good foundational education the children receive, they
often graduate without fluency in Turkmen. Families in this
situation have no other choice but to send their children to
Russia or other countries to attend university. Predictably,
many do not return to Turkmenistan, further adding to the
country's "brain drain."


7. (SBU) When the choice is made to send a child abroad,
families may have to split in order to give their children
better opportunities than are available in Turkmenistan. For
example, one man's wife is Russian, and he sent his entire
family to Russia in order to give his oldest son the
opportunity to get a higher education. The boy could not
qualify for Turkmen universities due to the language
requirement. The father said that he plans to join them
after he is able to save some money, and he stated that there
are no opportunities for children in Turkmenistan, especially
if they only speak Russian. He has two other children in
Turkmenistan who he will have to leave behind in order to be
with his wife and younger children. Such choices are not
uncommon in Turkmenistan, and they occur nationwide.

FOREIGN-EDUCATED STUDENTS OFTEN LEAVE TURKMENISTAN


8. (SBU) Another woman sent both of her children to
universities in Russia, also because they do not speak
Turkmen. Neither child is particularly interested in
returning to Turkmenistan, and both are pursuing studies in
areas that are not practical for finding jobs in Turkmen
society. One is studying psychology, which, as his mother
put it, is impossible to use in a place like Turkmenistan.
The woman's daughter continues to work in Russia in areas
unrelated to her field of study in order to continue her
education, and she will likely remain there after she
graduates.


9. (SBU) One U.S.-educated student, who returned at the
beginning of July, found a job in her field of study,
architecture. However, she does not plan on staying in
Turkmenistan for long, because she is not able to use most of
her portfolio and has no options other than low-paid
government work. Another student works in Afghanistan,
because she is unable to find a job in Turkmenistan. She
only returns to visit her family. Educated Turkmen often
turn to international organizations and businesses in order
to earn wages that match their education levels, unless they
hold a particularly valued skill, such as architecture.
Without opportunities in Turkmenistan, students leave for
better ones wherever they can find them.


10. (SBU) COMMENT: Despite efforts at reform, economic and
educational opportunities for young people remain limited.
There is significant frustration with the lack of jobs in the
private sector, the inability to use much of the knowledge
obtained abroad, and the need to know someone in order to get
a decent paying job. As long as this remains the case, many
of the country's best and brightest may try to seek their
fortunes abroad. END COMMENT.
CURRAN