News Headlines

• COOPERATION: Asia-Development Bank to provide $ 910,000 for
  clearing off debts of dehqan farms in Tajikistan.
• HEALTHCARE: MSF conducts seminar on use of medicines in
  Khorog.
• EMPLOYMENT: Employment Center in Dushanbe sums up results of
  work carried out in January-September.
• INDUSTRY: Tajik-Ukrainian Joint Venture on assembling
  caterpillar tractors to be launched at "Tajiktextilemash" plant in
  Tajik capital.
• CULTURE: "Society Against Narcotics" contest for amateur
  dramatics announced in Gorno Badakhshan.
• SPORTS: Tajik judo wrestlers win two gold medals in Dushanbe
  Central Asian Games.
• REGIONS: Sanitary-Epidemiological Station in Sughd combating
  low-quality food commodities.
  

COOPERATION

ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK TO PROVIDE $ 910,000 FOR CLEARING OFF
DEBTS OF DEHQAN FARMS IN TAJIKISTAN
DUSHANBE, October 16, Asia-Plus - The Asian Development Bank (ADB)
will provide a grant of $ 910,000 to Tajikistan.
As Asia-Plus was told at the Tajik Ministry of Land Reclamation and
Water Resources this amount would be spent for reducing debts of
dehqan (peasant) farms for use of water in accordance with a joint
project of the Ministry and the Asian Development Bank. It is
expected that practical implementation of he project will begin in
January-February of the next year.
Experts from the Asian Development Bank consider that the main reason
for the crisis state of water supply system and debt of the dehqan
farms was the civil war that had caused a great damage to all
infrastructure of Tajikistan.

HEALTHCARE

MSF CONDUCTS SEMINAR ON USE OF MEDICINES IN GORNO BADAKHSHAN
KHOROG, October 16, Asia-Plus - International organization Medicins
Sans Frontieres (MSF) has staged a seminar on use of pharmaceutical
output in Khorog, capital of the Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Province
(GBAO), the Asia-Plus correspondent for Khorog reported.
The seminar participants included representatives from medical
establishments, pharmaceutical services and some local non-government
organizations working in the province. Ms. Lailo Qurbonmamadova, MSF
Medical Coordinator in the GBAO, told Asia-Plus that invited
representatives from the "Somonioyon" Group at the World Health
Organization (WHO) in Tajikistan had discussed with participants in
the seminar issues related to purchasing, delivering, selling and
using medical preparations. Representative from the National Research
Center for Examination of Medicinal Preparations speaking at the
meeting noted that 95 percent of medicines imported to the republic
"by unlicensed way" didn't meet requirements of the WHO.
Employees of medical establishments have been given recommendations on
enhancement of pharmaceutical sector, new information and licensed
addresses of pharmaceutical enterprises dealing with delivery and sale
of medicines meeting international standards of quality in Tajikistan
and abroad.

EMPLOYMENT

EMPLOYMENT CENTER SUMS UP RESULTS OF WORK
CARRIED OUT IN NINE MONTHS OF 2003
DUSHANBE, October 16, Asia-Plus - The Employment Center in Dushanbe
has summed up the results of work carried out over nine months of the
current year.
As Asia-Plus was told at Labor Market Department at the Center 3,464
persons have applied to the Center for consultations on employment
issues over the mentioned period. In nine months of 2003, 5,974
persons seeking job were registered with the Center. Meantime, 1,072
persons have been given a status of unemployed. The Center has
conducted seven fairs for job vacancies in the Tajik capital over the
mentioned period. 454 persons have been placed in jobs at various
enterprises and organizations. The Center plans to hold two other
such fairs in November and December.
According to specialists from the Employment Center, the most demanded
professions in Dushanbe are builders, teachers, medical and textile
workers. But many residents of the capital city don't want to get a
job on these professions because of low wages. Experts from the
Employment Center estimate that a rate of unemployment in Dushanbe in
2003 will be accounted for 0.9 percent of a total number of residents
of Dushanbe, and in 2004 and 2005, it will be accounted for 0.8
percent.

INDUSTRY

TAJIK-UKRAINIAN JOINT VENTURE TO BE LAUNCHED
AT "TAJIKTEXTILEMASH" IN TAJIK CAPITAL
DUSHANBE, October 16, Asia-Plus - A Tajik-Ukrainian Joint Venture on
assembling caterpillar tractors is supposed to be launched at the
Dushanbe-based "Tajiktextilemash" plant at the end of the current
year, Homid Abdulloyev, Director General of the "Textilemash" plant
told Asia-Plus.
According to him, the Tajik side will represented by the
"Tajiktextilemash" and the Ukrainian side will be represented by the
Open Joint Stock Company (OJSC) "Kharkov Tractor Plant". An agreement
on launching the joint venture was reached in the spring of 2003,
during a visit of the Kharkov Tractor Plant's delegation led by Pyotr
Todorov, Director General of the Kharkov Tractor Plant. Tajikistan's
share in an initial capital of the joint venture will include fixed
means, equipment, production sites and engineering infrastructure, and
the Ukraine's share will consist of spare parts and components and
carrying out a feasibility study on the proposals for the joint
venture. The tractor assembled at the joint venture will cost $
15,000.
According to Abdulloyev, the "Textilemash" has produced 940.000 Somoni
worth of output over nine months of this year, which is 122.4 as
percentage of the same period of the previous year. At present, the
plant is producing spare parts and components for the Tajik Railways,
cotton-ginning factories, etc.

NEW PROJECTS TO SUPPORT CRAFTSMEN LAUNCHED IN FERGANA VALLEY
KHUJAND, October 16, Asia-Plus - The US Agency for International
Development (USAID) and Tashkent office of the "Eurasia" Foundation
have launched in Fergana Valley a new project to support enterprise
through development of craftsmanship, the Asia-Plus correspondent for
Khujand reported.
Ms. Kibriyo Majidova, Chairperson of the Khujand-based "Fath"
non-government organization participating in implementation of the
project, told Asia-Plus that the project would be implemented at
several stages. "The first stage includes collection of information
about craftsmen in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan producing
output being competitive on foreign market", said she, "The database
containing addresses and photographs of craftsmen and their output
will be created". Then, according to Majidova, this database in a
form of reference book will be distributed to various organizations,
including foreign ministries of the three countries. After that, an
educational part of the project will begin, according to her.
"Craftsmen will learn how to run business and conduct themselves on
market", she told Asia-Plus. Majidova noted the final component of
the project will be organization of craftsmen's going out to
exhibitions.

CULTURE

"SOCIETY AGAINST NARCOTICS" CONTEST FOR AMATEUR
DRAMATICS ANNOUNCED IN GBAO
KHOROG, October 16, Asia-Plus - "Society Against Narcotics", that is
the motto of the contest for amateur dramatics announced by the GBAO
Center for Folk Arts, the Asia-Plus correspondent for Khorog reported.
Under conditions of the contest, creative groups have to submit to the
verdict of judges of the contest plays exposing ruinous effects of use
of drugs on health and a state of society. Director of the GBAO
Center for Folk Arts, Mulkamon Mamadamonov told Asia-Plus that already
four groups from Rushan, Ishkashim, Murgab and Vanj Districts had
agreed to participate.
According to the Asia-Plus interlocutor, the contest is being held
under support of the Swiss Cooperation Office in Tajikistan. Winners
will receive prizes and valuable presents provided by the organizers.

SPORTS

TAJIK JUDO WRESTLERS WIN TWO GOLD MEDALS
IN DUSHANBE CENTRAL ASIAN GAMES
DUSHANBE, October 16, Asia-Plus - Yesterday, two Tajik judo wrestlers,
Rauf Hukumov (81 kilograms) and Parviz Sobirov (90 kilograms) won
first two gold medal for the Tajik national team in the Dushanbe
Central Asian Games. The other Tajik athlete, Khairullo Nazriyev (100
kilograms) won took the third place and won the bronze medal in judo.
The silver medal in this weight category fell to lot of other Tajik
sportsman, Amirbek Shiekhov, who was second to the wrestler from
Uzbekistan.
On results of the first day of the Games, Tajikistan stands on the
first place with two gold, one silver and one bronze medals. It is
followed by the national teams from Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan that won
one gold and three bronze medals each.

REGIONS

SANITARY-EPIDEMIOLOGICAL STATION IN SUGHD COMBATING
LAW-QUALITY FOOD COMMODITIES
KHUJAND, October 16, Asia-Plus - According to experts from the
Sanitary-Epidemiological Station for Sughd Province, more than 300
items of food commodities in shops in northern Tajikistan don't meet
requirements of quality, the Asia-Plus correspondent for Khujand
reported.
The experts have come to such a conclusion after checking shops
trading in food commodities in the territory of Sughd Province.
Experts noted that both local and imported food commodities don't meet
standards. Bahodur Boturov, head of the Nutrition Hygiene Department
with the Sanitary-Epidemiological Station, told Asia-Plus that
inspectors from the Station have checked 6,044 shops over the past
three months. He noted that the shops had been fined a total of 5,696
Somoni.

CHINA HAILS HERO ASTRONAUT
DUSHANBE, October 16, Asia-Plus - BBC News -- China's first astronaut
has landed back on Earth to a hero's welcome after an historic mission
in which he orbited the globe14 times, BBC News reported.
The Shenzhou V craft touched down on Thursday morning in northern
China 21 hours after being rocketed into space. Astronaut Yang Liwei
emerged from the capsule saying: "I'm feeling good. I'm proud of my
motherland," before being whisked away to meet political leaders in
the capital Beijing. China officials say the next goals in their
space program is to set up a space laboratory and a space station.
Yang Liwei's return fulfils China's bid to become only the third
country to send a man into space, after the former Soviet Union and
the United States. Prime Minister Wen Jiabao sent his congratulations
and hailed the mission "a complete success" after speaking with Yang.
In the United States, Nasa administrator Sean O'Keefe described it as
an important achievement. United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan
said space exploration knew no national borders, "the mission of the
Shenzhou V is a step forward for all mankind".

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