Meeting of the Joint Steering Committee of the Joint Work Plan of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework for Tajikistan (UNDAF)

On April 2, 2021, at the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of the Republic of Tajikistan, a meeting of the joint steering committee on the UNDAF joint work plan for 2021-2022 was held with the participation of heads of ministries and departments, representatives of UN agencies - members of the teams on the results of the United Nations Assistance Framework Development Goals in Tajikistan (UNDAF).

    The meeting was moderated by Zavqizoda Zavqi Amin, Minister of Economic Development and Trade, and Sezin Sinanoglu, Resident Coordinator of the United Nations in Tajikistan.

   Zavqizoda Zavqi Amin noted that the Founder of Peace and National Unity – Leader of the Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon in His Message to Majlisi Oli, noted significant economic and social achievements of the country and set priorities for the development of sectors of the national economy for 2021 and next seven years.

   In particular, during the period 2016 - 2020, as a result of measures taken by the Government of the Republic in cooperation with United Nations agencies and other development partners of the country, the average annual growth of GDP was at least 7 per cent and the volume of GDP increased by 1.6. The poverty rate was reduced from 31.3 percent to 26.3 percent, and according to World Bank estimates Tajikistan is among the top 10 countries in the world in terms of the rate of poverty reduction. The monetary income of the population increased by 1.9, number of entrepreneurs increased by 1.6. The share of exports in external trade increased from 20 to 31 percent, while the share of imports declined from 80 to 69 percent.

  In 2020, in order to implement the instructions of the Leader of the Nation, the Plan of Measures to prevent and reduce the potential risks of the coronavirus COVID-19 in the world on the national economy was developed and adopted.

   As a result, industrial output in 2020 grew by 9.7 percent, agriculture by 8.8 percent and exports by 4.5 percent, laying foundation for the country’s economic development at 4.5 per cent.

  Also, the increase in food production in 2020 increased by 28.3% compared to 2019, which contributed to the better provision of domestic products to the domestic market. More than 5.4 billion somoni from foreign investment has been attracted to various sectors of the national economy, including 1.3 billion somoni from foreign direct investment.

 The budget of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) for Tajikistan in financing various economic and social areas amounts to over 363 million dollars.

  United Nations agencies, other development partners, civil society organizations and the private sector, together with relevant government agencies, directed their support to the health system to fight COVID-19 and some of the funds were allocated to the United Nations Development Assistance Framework for Tajikistan.

 Heads of United Nations agencies, including UNDP Resident Representative Pratibha Mehta, Head of Food and Agriculture Programme Office Oleg Guchgeldiev and others presented the results of joint activities related to the UNDAF programme, UN Reforms, Integrated Socio-Economic Response to Economic and Social Impacts COVID-19, Joint Work Plan 2021-2022, Further Plan for 2016 UNDAF Evaluation2022 and the development of a new draft UN Sustainable Development Framework 2023-2026, and exchanged views and proposals on these issues.

   The representatives of development partners highly appreciated socio-economic reforms of the Government of the Republic in order to achieve strategic goals and priorities, and expressed their readiness to increase assistance and support for sustainable socio-economic and environmental development of the country.

  At the end of the meeting, the Joint Steering Committee took appropriate decisions on the issues on the agenda and expressed its readiness to strengthen fruitful cooperation with UN agencies.