News Release issued by
the COI News Distribution Service on 30 September 2009
A new plan to
allocate £14 million is set to drive economic growth across
Central Asia and tackle poverty in the region’s poorest areas.
The Department for International Development’s three-year plan
will look at boosting the business climate across the region,
strengthening public services and improving the effectiveness of
development organisations.
By 2012 the plan aims to turn
around the region’s finances by:
Helping over one million people participate in rural growth
programmes, including setting up new small businesses.Helping at
least 5,000 rural men, women and children take advantage of the
opportunities migration providesEnsuring at least 20,000 people in
the region at risk of HIV and AIDS are able to access harm
reduction services Helping the poorest 40 percent of households
significantly reduce the amount they spend on health.
DFID’s work in the region to date has focussed on the two poorest
countries, Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan. Under the new
Central Asia Development Strategy, UK aid will continue
this support, but will also be used to reduce poverty regionally
by promoting sustained and inclusive economic growth across all
five countries in Central Asia.
Talking about the new plan, Development Minister Mike Foster said:
“The collapse of the former Soviet Union had a significant impact
on Central Asia, and the recent economic downturn has made worse
an already fragile situation. The Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan
are particularly at risk from the global recession, and face major
challenges including lack of economic opportunities and a
continuing dependence on remittances.
“We believe that one of the best ways to alleviate poverty in
these countries is to look at making it easier to set up new
enterprises and to do business in order to boost the economic
growth that is needed for long-term stability. To do this, we need
to move beyond a focus on individual countries and look to help
tackle challenges across the region.”
The plan sets out how £14m will be spent in three key areas:
improving the effectiveness of the main organisations working on
development issues nationally and regionally; promoting an
improved business climate for private sector development; and
strengthening public service delivery in Tajikistan and Kyrgyz
Republic.
Notes to Editors
1. DFID’s Central Asia Development Strategy can be found on our
website at www.dfid.gov.uk
2. Central Asia is made up of the five former Soviet
Republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan
and Uzbekistan. Tajikistan and the Kyrgyz Republic, the poorest
countries in the region, face major challenges. Some 80%–90% of
their territory is mountainous, leaving just 5%–7% of land for
cultivation of crops. 70% of the population live in rural areas.
Lack of economic opportunities in both countries means that many
young people, mainly men, have to seek employment elsewhere. Both
countries are heavily dependent on remittances and more recently
the whole region has been hit hard by the global economic downturn.
3. DFID has been working in Central Asia since 1997, first in
the Kyrgyz Republic, and then in Tajikistan from 2003. In addition
to our bilateral programme work we contribute to the region’s
development through the UK’s membership of multilateral
organisations including the EU, the World Bank, the UN, the
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the Asian
Development Bank.
4. DFID is already working regionally on HIV and AIDS. The
Central Asia HIV and AIDS Programme supports 32 “Trust Points” and
mobile units in Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan and is
focused on providing harm reduction services for vulnerable groups
(19,000 clients to date) to significantly reduce transmission of
HIV. We also fund the World Bank’s Central Asia Aids Project.
Contacts:
Michael Haig.
Phone: 020 70230423
m-haig@dfid.gov.uk