VZCZCXRO7041
RR RUEHLN RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHDBU #0735/01 1511228
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 301228Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY DUSHANBE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0591
INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL 0167
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 0097
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 0139
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 0108

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