ICA Tajikistan

OUR MAIN PROJECTS:

Below is a list of EHIO's long time projects and our present projects

Project “Peaceful Communities Initiatives” (PCI) (MC/USAID).
Country joint project with ICA USA. Training of Trainers on Technology of Participation methodology (ICA USA).
Project for provision of Isfara region, the Republic of Tajikistan, with clean drinking water (MC/ECHO).
Project “Community empowerment for health and water” (CF: MC/SCOTLAND).
Project for capacity building of jamoat support centres in Chorkuh, Kostakoz, Ovchi Kalacha of Soghd oblast (UNDP).
Project “REGION FOR YOUTH” (MC/USAID).
Project for the involvement of youth in environmental protection within IREX Advocacy Program (IREX/USAID).
Project for sport development of youth within IREX Program on Community Development (IREX/USAID).
Increasing efficiency of the local government through improved participation (CANADIAN EMBASSY IN KAZAKHSTAN/CIDA).
Facilitating agricultural reform and marketing project in Soghd oblast (CECI/CIDA).
Fergana Valley Water Resource Management Project: sub component “Agricultural Development” (IDA WORLD BANK).
AKDN Civil Society Programme: Project on capacity building and sustainability of Civil Society Organizations in Tajikistan (AKF/DFID).
Livelihood Recovery program (MC/Bill and Melinda Gates).
Tajikistan Stability Enhancement Program (MC/USAID).
Training and facilitation services.

We would like to tell you about our projects for the last few years.

1. Collaboration with the Canadian Centre of Research and Collaboration (CECI - Tajikistan) on development of dehkan farms within “Facilitating Agricultural Reform and Marketing in Soghd oblast” (FARMS).

Project duration: August 2006 – February 2010


	PO “EHIO” employees Akhmedov Bobokhon and Faizieva Natalia. are conducting a focus-group in the Project “Promotion of agrarian reform and marketing in Soghd oblast” in Zafarabad district, Soghd oblast. Donors CECI/CIDA. July 2009.

The Canadian Centre of Research and Collaboration (CECI - Tajikistan) implements the project, the goal of which is to support sustainable economic opportunities and improve the living for rural families in Tajikistan with equal benefit to family members, women, men and children.

Gender equality and justice are an integral part of the project. It is not an individual direction but it is the subject that comprises the whole project.

Accordingly the working plan is arranged and conducted by focus groups in 5 targeted districts: Kanibadam, Asht, Mastcha, Zafarabad, Spitamen.

Focus groups carry out the purpose of improving the DF members participation into the management process in the research fields and the introduction of these actions into Dehkan farms.

PO – EHIO “Farhang va Tarakkiyot” in this project is responsible for providing focus groups in the following districts: Zafarabad, Spitamen (2007) and Dj. Rasulov. The focus groups discuss the following key items:

Certificate on right of land tenure
Certificate availability for share
Debts to investors and other organizations, bodies
Management issues
Transparency – reporting
Salary issues
Debts of investors in DF
Land share re-registration
Fertilizers, machinery
Access to resources
Gender
Participation
Membership in DF
Relation/correlation of DF members, hired personnel
Legal rights

Trainers/facilitators of PO – EHIO “Farhang va Tarakkiyot” are conducting training sessions in targeted districts of (Zafarabad, Dj. Rasulov and Spitamen) on the topics of:

“Bookkeeping and registration for the financial operations of a dehkan farm”, “Financial analysis of DF”, “Budgeting and cash flow calculation in DF”, and the “DF business plan”. After such training, trained DF members work as accountants in their dehkan farms.

Using the strategy, “Leading Dehkan farm” and “united farms” (neighbouring farms), relative to the research field; regular information for DF members and employees is provided both for men and women. It also collects regular information for timely response to all project components. Other topics and issues are discussed to develop practical steps for their introduction.

Focus groups are used as a tool for each of the 5 project components. At the same time they complete a function relative to mobilization and the informing of members, (women and men).

Special attention is paid to gender equality while carrying out these measures, not only within the project framework, but in the everyday activity of DF and the organizations partners.

Project donors: CECI/CIDA.

2. The Fergana Valley Water Resources Management Project component, “Institutional Development and Technical Assistance,” sub component “Agricultural Development Support,”

Project duration: June 2007 – October 2010


	PO “EHIO” team monitoring the “Fergana Valley Water Resource Management Project”, sub component “Agricultural development”, financed by International Development Association of the World Bank, Kanibadam district, Soghd oblast, May 2009.

Key Project goals: capacity improvement, for increasing fertility of irrigated lands and increasing the rural population’s income in Fergana valley, through improvement of land and water management; and improvement of security and regulation of Kairakkum dam and pool for providing security and efficiency of water management on pool level.

The main goals of PO EHIO “Farhang va Tarakkiyout” within the project framework:

Carrying out informational campaign in targeted districts;
Preliminary survey of existing practice of crops growing;
Preparation, and selection of the number and types of demonstration plots in Kanibadam and B. Gafurov districts;
Introducing new agricultural technologies for increasing yield on demo plots;
Developing and conducting the training for farmers in two targeted districts of the Project;
Creation of 2 information–consulting centres in the targeted districts, based on the 2 pre–created examples, to keep the Project Association of Water users, in the two targeted districts, up-to-date.

The project is regularly monitored by the World Bank Mission, PMU and FVWRMP (Project Management Unit “Fergana Valley Water Resources Management Project»), presenting Republic of Tajikistan (RT) Government.

Donors: International Association of Development (IDA) of World Bank.

3. AKDN Civil Society Program: Project on capacity building and sustainability of Civil Society Organizations in Tajikistan.

Project duration: August 2007 – October 2010.

Project goals and tasks: To provide loyal Civil Society Organizations with the right organizational tools for development purposes, with:

Self – assessment structure;
Certification structure;
Capacity building possibilities.


	At the Round Table the Senior Adviser of RT President Mr.Koshonov Subkhon makes a speech. The Round Table was lead by Safarova Marina - PO “EHIO” director. Project of “Civil society” Program donor, Aga Khan Foundation in Tajikistan with financial support of DFID. September 2009, Dushanbe.

	Visit to Pakistanian Centre for Philanthropy (PCP) initiated and organized by PO “EHIO” within the framework of the Program “Civil society”, Aga Khan Foundation Tajikistan with financial support of DFID. The second from left side is PO “EHIO” director - Marina Safarova. October 2009, Islamabad, Pakistan.

Within this project framework, two public certifications were conducted on a voluntary basis, and about 80 civil society organizations, from throughout the Republic, were certified . Certification commission members are from several individual groups of society – the President’s Board, Parliamentary deputies, the Ministries of Justice and Education, also representatives of public organizations, international organizations, and mass media. At the present time a third public certification is planned. For certified CSOs, training in capacity building is conducted, for example, on the theme, “Organizational development – approach to capacity building”. Training themes are often suggested by certified CSOs themselves at the Round tables, based on certification results, or while preparing regional meetings. PO “EHIO – Farhang va Tarakkiyot” received its certification by carrying out the first public certification in RT.

Also within this project framework the organization has provided material for the newspaper, “Business and policy.” where we share space with other partners of the program, “Civil Society” on the “Dialogue” page. On this same page articles regarding development issues were published, along with success stories of CSOs and other material from books, magazines, and scientific literature, devoted to Civil Society development in RT.

The Project is still continuing at this time.

Project donors: Aga Khan Foundation, Tajikistan/DFID

4.“Livelihood Recovery Program”

Project duration: August 2008 – February 2009

Project goal: stimulation of the economy to strengthen security and to ensure that the population of the Zafarabad district has the ability to withstand the effects of bad weather, such as that experienced during the winter of 2007-2008.

Within this Project framework PO “EHIO – Farhang va Tarakkiyot” has supported 500 of the most vulnerable households, in the Zafarabad district, with lump-sum humanitarian aid in the amount of 500 Tajik somoni per household. For this purpose PO “EHIO – Farhang va Tarakkiyot” performed the following important actions:

Participated jointly with the local state authorities’ representatives, community members and Mercy Corps (MC) team, to carry out a further assessment of the communities, and initialize a second analysis of the information for selecting other communities of Zafarabad district, that had suffered the most, for the project implementation;
Statistic assessment of food safety of the selected community “Ravshan”;
Cooperated with Village Development Committees, created beforehand by MC in this district, for the efficient implementation of the program ;
Worked with selected households to train them in action planning, namely, in the best use of the money provided;
Were conducted training for developing individual plans of the households for appropriate use of cash;
Developed an agreement with each household concerning use of the money according to the individual household plan;
Made individual cash payments to the registered households;
Conducted regular monitoring sessions on the use of the money, transferred to the “Ravshan” community;
Conducted assessment of the Program on completion, for its impact and benefit.

Project donors: Mercy Corps/Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

5. “Tajikistan Stability Enhancement Program”

Project duration: December 2009 – October 2010

Project goal: improving economic development of the country, increasing the quality of life for the vulnerable population in Tajikistan.

Project objectives:

To strengthen management and stability at Mahallya (village) level:
Ensuring cooperation between jamoats and communities in solving instability issues, through the implementation of joint projects:
Ensuring cooperation between local Khukumat, jamoats and communities:
Improving economic development, improving the main infrastructure and to provide job openings.

This program is working in several targeted districts of Tajikistan: Gharm, Tavildara, Shaartuz and Kubodiyon, (Khatlon oblast), in the south of Tajikistan, also in Ast and Isfara (Soghd oblast) in the north of Tajikistan. As the project is new, the following activities have been started within its framework:

An assessment in targeted districts was conducted for choosing communities;.
A baseline assessment was conducted of the targeted jamoats;
The selection of Focus-groups, general meetings, Community Action Group (CAG) was conducted;
Conducting a set of training sessions for the training of CAG members.

Project donors: Mercy Corps/USAID.

6. PO “EHIO – Farhang va Tarakkiyot” is the founder of Agricultural Association “Agrodonish”. The National Association of Agricultural Advisory Services “AgroDonish” is a non-profit, independent and non-political organization. The decision to establish the Association was made at the beginning of 2009 and that year it was officially registered by the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Tajikistan.

AgroDonish is a national network of advisory services that promotes innovative and high quality agro extension activities to increase farmers’ incomes in Tajikistan. It should be mentioned that AgroDonish is the only public organization (representative of civil society) in Tajikistan, being a member of the Governmental working group on, “Establishment of effective information and advisory systems for farms and the creation of an operative information network for the timely informing of society on the agrarian reform implementation.” The goal of this Group is to develop a sustainable National agricultural extension system in Tajikistan.

7. Also the organization organizes and conducts training sessions, (about 30 themes), Round tables, Forums, assessments etc., for local and international organizations. Training in facilitation and other methods is given, as required, within a project's framework, and are conducted using Technology of Participation – ICA methodology.