Khudjanda, Tajikistan (November 26, 2004) - The first joint early warming report prepared by the UNDP staff working in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan offices in the context of the project on Cross Border Cooperation was presented to the participants of a bilateral - Kyrgyz-Tajik business meeting held in Khudjanda (Tajikistan) on November 26, 2004.
The leaders of Sogdiya provincial administration and Batken Province state administration, heads of regional administrations from different cross border areas and the UNDP staff from Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan offices as well as the chairmen of local self-governments of cross-border communities took part in the discussion.
This forum aimed at strengthening and further development of existing cooperation with the local governments and identification of new ways of solving the cross-border cooperation problems mentioned in early warning reports.
The early warning report was prepared by the UNDP staff of the two countries on the basis of risk factor analysis including competition for access to natural resources, interethnic and inter-group relations, distorted conception of reality, cross border problems embracing the issues of border demarcation and delimitation, migration, government actions and maintenance of law and order, environmental problems and issues of information access.
At the meeting, Shadibek Bakibekov, Deputy Head of Batken Province Administration remarked the importance of the initiatives of the international organizations including UNDP for successful resolution of the complexity of existing problems that the governments have to face in this difficult period.
“As regards the repots of the kind, valuable information collected by the program staff in the two countries, allows more accurate identification of potential conflicts and facilitates undertaking of modern and adequate measures for their prevention”, he said.
Mr. Islomiddinov, Mayor of the city of Isfara, Sogdiya province emphasized the usefulness and timeliness of the information included in the joint report.
“The only thing that could be avoided in the reports of the kind is excessive emotions,” said Mr. Islomiddinov. “I would also expand the chapter with the description of positive experience existing in the framework of local authority joint initiatives. The project has a number of achievements, which are important to be disseminated in other regions as well.”
“Joint analysis of the existing problems at the local level in the framework of the report, as well as discussion of the perspectives of cooperation between the authorities and UNDP in the field of cross border cooperation gives us good basis to think of the ways of our contribution to real resolution of these problems in the future,” said Anna Matveeva, UNDP Regional Advisor on Peace and Development summarizing the meeting.
“This dialogue as a whole helped to identify the problem circle, which can be solved at the local level, as well as the issues which have to be settled at the level of state politics, but on which we could have certain effect,” said she.
Note: Since December 2003, UNDP Kyrgyzstan and UNDP Tajikistan have been implementing a joint program on cross border cooperation of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. At present, the program is being realized in four pilot regions of the two countries: Leylek and Batken in Kyrgyzstan, and Jabor Rasulov and Isfara in Tajikistan.
The program aims at supporting social and economic stability in the cross border regions of the two countries, as well as at increasing cross-border community participation and at strengthening the cooperation through promotion of a number of activities fostering mutual understanding and conflict prevention.
Along with establishing the System of Early Warning Report, donating small grants to the communities for social infrastructure rehabilitation and strengthening the potential of cross border communities and local administrations in conflict prevention and management, some cultural and sport activities are carried out, which contribute to establishment of friendship and good neighbor relations between the cross-border communities.
For more information, please contact Ms. Mia Rimby, UNDP Programme Office. Tel: 0 (996 312) 61-12-13. Fax: 0 (996 312) 61-12-17. Email: mr@undp.kg, or Mr. Abdiraim Jorokulov, Manager of the UNDP Preventive Development Programme. Tel: (996 3222) 5-78-37, Fax: (996 3222) 5-57-13, e-mail: aj@pdp.undp.kg
