Meeting of a group of Yagnob women with the chairman of the Anzob village council

On October 25 this year, a group of 8 women - residents of the villages of the Yagnob Valley visited Anzob (located at a distance of about 60 km from the beginning of the valley), where a meeting was organized for them with the chairman of their jamoat (village council). For the first time the women were able to directly communicate with a representative of the local government. The event became part of the project "Sustainable Use of Natural Resources and Participation of Women in the Mountain Communities of Yagnob", which is being implemented by the Little Earth.

The meeting with the chairman of the jamoat, Mr. Olimzoda Zarafshon, took place in the building of the village council. During the conversation, he spoke about the active women who once headed the Anzob jamoat. According to him, in the history of Soviet and modern Tajikistan, 4 women held the post of head of the local village council. The chairman also spoke about the existing opportunity for young girls to receive a pedagogical education and expressed his readiness to assist in this.

The women, in turn, told him about the most pressing issues faced by the population of the villages in the Yagnob Valley. In particular, they noted the lack of a school and a medical center in the valley itself, as well as the poor condition of the only road that connects their valley to the main highway and that is closed in winter. They also noted the importance of introducing affordable renewable and energy efficient technologies, and cited as an example the devices received by their families during the project.

The Yagnob women also had time to talk with a representative of the Women and Family Affairs Department, Ms. Davlyatova Subhiya, who shared with them general information about the work being done to activate the role of women at the jamoat level.

At the end of the meeting, Mr. Olimzoda Zarafshon noted that the jamoat will try, to the best of its ability, to assist the residents of the valley in solving their problems. He also expressed hope for a new meeting with the women of Yagnob.

The project "Sustainable Management of Natural Resources and Participation of Women in Mountain Communities of Yagnob" is implemented with the support of the Swedish association Forum-CIV and with the assistance of the Swedish partner Centralasiengrupperna.