TAJIKISTAN - VISIT TO RASHT VALLEY HIGHLIGHTS IMPORTANCE OF

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DUSHANBE 000735 SENSITIVE SIPDIS AIDAC E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV ECON EAID ASEC TI SUBJECT: TAJIKISTAN - VISIT TO RASHT VALLEY HIGHLIGHTS IMPORTANCE OF FOOD FOR PEACE PROGRAM ¶1. Summary: Ambassador spent two days in the poor but picturesque Rasht Valley this week, meeting with local government officials, U.S. Government grantees, and visiting villages receiving the final food distribution from the Food for Peace (P.L. 480) Program (FFP), through USAID implementing partner Mercy Corps. The development assistance coupled with the food distribution provided by the FFP Program has had a remarkable impact in this poor and neglected region of the country. However, with the program scheduled to end early next year during what is expected to be a year with a poor harvest and worsening food insecurity, such rural communities are anxious and concerned that their gains may be short lived without the continued support and guidance provided by the program. End Summary. Rasht Becoming More Accessible -------------- ¶2. The Ambassador arrived in the town of Gharm, the regional capital, in a record time of just over four hours on the road, thanks to a partially-completed new road laid by Chinese contractors that winds through the snow-capped mountain peaks. The Ambassador visited an Embassy English Access Micro-scholarship Program class, and conversed with students who had just begun their studies this past November. The participants were mostly from schools in surrounding villages that offered no English instruction. Several students inquired about opportunities to study in the U.S. and the possibility of American teenagers attending summer English language camps. The Ambassador discussed the FLEX and UGRAD exchange programs, and encouraged their continued progress in English. The Ambassador also visited and spoke to the participants of an activity organized by a recipient of a Democracy Commission grant. She observed students peppering one another on questions about corruption in a game-show like competition, and watched a skit that involved the arrest of a corrupt public official. ¶3. Mahmadsharif Tolibov, the Chairman of the Rasht District, met with the Ambassador and thanked her for U.S. Government assistance, particularly Mercy Corps' support to vulnerable persons and households throughout the region. Chairman Tolibov also provided an update on the implementation of President Rahmon's plan on agriculture, detailing the increased acreage of wheat, fruit, and vegetables (and therefore not cotton) that was currently underway in the region. ¶4. Chairman Tolibov described the main problems of the region as the growing expense of food for households and the rising costs of seed and the lack of machinery for farmers. He requested U.S. assistance in establishing a farming machinery and equipment cooperative that could issue or loan farmers equipment on an ongoing and as-needed basis. All Quiet After February Shooting -------------- ¶5. (SBU) When questioned by the Ambassador on the events of February in Gharm, when a shootout resulted in the death of Colonel Oleg Zacharchinko, Commander of the Ministry of Interior's Militia Detachment for Special Purposes (OMON),and several other casualties, Chairman Tolibov dismissed the incident as an internal disagreement that was resolved in half an hour. He went on to describe the region as "absolutely calm and quiet." (Note: His description was completely at odds with the scene the Ambassador's security detail found upon their arrival in Gharm: streets lined Qsecurity detail found upon their arrival in Gharm: streets lined with bearded men carrying AK-47s. The men, loyal to local Ministry of Interior Security boss Akmedov, alleged to be behind the shooting of Zacharchinko in February, made themselves scarce following a request from our security detail chief. More on this subject Septel.) ¶6. Chairman Tolibov also described the increased extraction of coal and the presence of a British private company "DAK," which is working on building access roads and the extraction of the coal. According to the Chairman, the coal will be used, in part, to heat schools next winter. [Comment: Rasht coal is rich in anthracite, so has important metallurgic applications. Tolibov mentioned that TALCO was interested. Some observers have suggested the February shootout was related to different factions competing for control of the coal.] Drops from the Sea - Building a River -------------- ¶7. The Ambassador spent a morning visiting villages that benefit from the FFP Development Assistance Program implemented locally by Mercy Corps. The goal of the program is to reduce chronic food insecurity and the vulnerability of households in Tajikistan. The DUSHANBE 00000735 002 OF 002 program supports agricultural development and complementary health and nutrition activities in nearly 100 villages of the Rasht Valley. In order to increase agricultural output in these food deficient areas and improve nutrition practices, the program includes the promotion of greenhouses throughout the villages, has introduced canning, pickling, and the dehydration of fruits and vegetables for storage, school lunches, home consumption, and eventually for sale both locally and regionally. The program also provides training and support in nutrition behavior change and in health promotion, including safe motherhood, pre-natal and post-natal care, breastfeeding and supplementary feeding, and the prevention of diarrhea, anemia, and goiter. The direct food distributions are used as incentives for community and individual participation. ¶8. The program has been tremendously successful and continues to provide a lifeline of support to some of the most vulnerable persons in the country. However, as one of the beneficiaries, a middle-aged woman from the Boqi Rahimzoda district waiting patiently and enthusiastically for the distribution of food from the back of a truck said, "we are so happy to receive these drops from the sea, but we still need to build the river that will sustain us." Without Food For Peace, Progress Will be Lost -------------- ¶9. The Head of this district, Abdullohi Dodarkhuja, thanked the Ambassador for this program and requested that it not end. Mr. Dodarkhuja expects a poor harvest this year as a result of the harsh winter and accompanying damage to fruit trees. He feared that, "much of the progress and achievements can be lost as the program is still new to many of the people." But Great Progress There has Been -------------- ¶10. Some of the results from the program became immediately apparent from the stroll through the villages. Last year, Mercy Corps initiated and supported the establishment of about 150 greenhouses in the region. The increased production that resulted last year from the greenhouses and related training spawned an explosion of greenhouses in the region this year, to more than 2000. These new greenhouses were established solely from the resources of the individual farmers after observing and learning about the benefits reaped from last year's harvests. Mercy Corps ensured that the necessary material (clear plastic) not previously available in the local shops, were made available through suppliers. As observed this week, crops within the greenhouses were generally three to four feet high, with the regular crops next to the greenhouses generally about one-third that height. ¶11. The program also brings women together to discuss common issues and problems, while they traditionally seldom had such opportunities. The women discuss issues of health and nutrition, participate in safe motherhood, pre-natal and child-care trainings, and food preparation and preservation training. The discussions provide a support network for women of the village while many men are working in Russia, are too old or sick, or are simply unemployed. "With no jobs, this program is teaching us a livelihood, and giving us healthier children," confirmed another active participant of the program, as she received her food distribution. ¶12. Comment. We cannot overstate the value and impact of the FFP Q12. Comment. We cannot overstate the value and impact of the FFP Programs in Tajikistan, as our visit to the Rasht Valley amply demonstrated. While teaching some of the most vulnerable persons how to better care and provide for their families in both the short and long-term, the FFP Program provides a safety net to these people and communities. With this program scheduled to end early next year, in conjunction with the end of the WFP also next year, the suffering of the people of Tajikistan will likely worsen. We are likely to then fall into a food security emergency that will require a costly response - far more than the cost of continuing this program. Discontinuing the program will not only eliminate the safety net, but will destroy the NGO infrastructure that we - and other donors - use to deliver emergency assistance. End Comment. JACOBSON