GFDD Global Roundtable: Republic of Tajikistan Ambassador: His Excellency Sirodjidin Aslov Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Tajikistan to the United Nations

GFDD Global Roundtable: Republic of Tajikistan Ambassador: His Excellency Sirodjidin Aslov Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Tajikistan to the United Nations
Nueva York, 03/02/2011

Tajikistan: A former Soviet Republic became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991. It is a landlocked, rugged, mountainous country, with lush valleys to the south and north, and is located in Central Asia, west of China.

Tajiks are the country’s largest ethnic group, with Uzbeks making up a quarter of the population, over half of which is employed in agriculture and just one-fifth in industry.

Tajiks are the country’s largest ethnic group, with Uzbeks making up a quarter of the population, over half of which is employed in agriculture and just one-fifth in industry. The population is currently 7.5 million. The Tajik language is very close to Persian, spoken in Iran, and to Dari, spoken in Afghanistan.

The five-year civil war between the Moscow-backed government and the Islamist-led opposition, in which thousands were killed and over one-tenth of the population fled the country, ended in 1997 with a United Nations-brokered peace agreement.

Attention by the international community since the beginning of NATO intervention in neighboring Afghanistan has bought increased economic development and security assistance to Tajikistan. It is also in the early stages of seeking World Trade Organization membership and has joined NATO Partnership for Peace.

In honor of World Water Day, which will take place at the United Nations on March 21 and which, in 2011 will be presided over by Tajik Prime Minister, H.E. Oqil Ghaybulloyevich Oqilov, the Global Roundtable will focus on modern day challenges that Tajikistan faces with a particular emphasis on the role the country’s water supply plays in the health, food security, and sustainable development of the nation.