PRESS-RELEASE

Round Table on Tax Administration Issues

September 15, 2017 Dushanbe

September 15, 2017, a Round Table on Tax Administration Issues has been conducted at the National Library of Tajikistan.

The Deputy Chairman of the State Committee on Investment and State Property Management of the Republic of Tajikistan, Nigina Anvari has opened the Round Table and emphasized on taxation issues, necessity of improvement of tax administration as well as other aspects of this issue.

Representatives of the private sector, development partners, public authorities and international tax experts discussed and shared their opinion on taxation and tax administration issues.

General Director for OJSC "Guliston Dushanbe", Begov Dilshod Mirzomurod delivered a report on taxation of industrial enterprises.

Tax Expert, Andrey Krasnikov had a Presentation of Tax Administration Challenges in Agriculture Sector and Best Regional Experience on Tax Administration in CIS countries.

Director of NGO - Consulting and Information Center "Mushovir", Sodirov Otamurod has presented the successful experience of tax services to the private sector, which is currently being implemented in Sughd Region.

It should be reminded that according to paragraph 2 of Minutes of the ХVI Session of Consultative Council on Improvement of Investment Climate under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan dated April 12, 2016, it has been instructed to consider and submit to relevant ministries and agencies on the issue of the implementation of the consultative services in the agricultural sector of the republic.

The event was organized by the Secretariat of the Consultative Council on Improvement of Investment Climate under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan and the State Committee on Investments and State Property Management of the Republic of Tajikistan in cooperation with the Tax Committee under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan.

The summary of the event will be submitted to the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan with proposals and conclusions.

On 8 August 2017, a Round Table on Hearing the Draft Law of the Republic of Tajikistan “On Handcrafts” was held in Khorog.

Representatives of region’s private sector, development partners, State Committee on Investment and State Property Management, Secretariat of the Consultative Council on Improvement of Investment Climate attended the event.

During the presentation, it was informed that Draft law consists of 6 chapters and 32 articles. The Law was developed based on speeches, guidance of the Founder of Peace and National Unity – Leader of the Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan His Excellency Emomali Rahmon on support for revival and development of folk crafts, Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, Paris, 17 October 2003, General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, regulatory legal acts of the Republic of Tajikistan, as well as republics of Belarus. Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tatarstan and Moscow city on issues of handicrafts, protection of national heritage products, Federal Law of the Russian Federation “On Development of Handicraft in Russian Federation”.

After presentation of draft law participants have submitted their comments and proposals to it.

It should be noted that in accordance with paragraph 9, subparagraph 2 Protocol of ХVII Session of the Consultative Council on Improvement of Investment Climate under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan dated January 30, 2017 it was instructed to the State Committee on Investment and State Property Management and Secretariat of the Consultative Council on Improvement of Investment Climate under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan to develop Draft Law “On Handicrafts”.

This event was arranged for the purpose of studying, getting proposals and comments, conclusions and amendments to the draft law, in close collaboration with State Committee on Investment and State Property Management, Secretariat of the Consultative Council on the Improvement of Investment Climate under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan and NICE-TAK SEQUA gGmbH Project as well as such meetings are also planned in cities of Khujand, Kurgan-Tube and Dushanbe.

Draft Law “On Handicrafts” is available in the website of Consultative Council under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan on Improvement of Investment Climate as well as artisans, craftsmanship organizations and associations, experts, scientists, representatives of civil society, development partners are requested to take an active part in studying, consideration and submitting comments to it.

This morning, the Founder of Peace and National Unity, the Leader of the Nation, the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon, opened the seventeenth session of the Consultative Council on the Improvement of the Investment Climate under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan.

Members of the Consultative Council, representatives of the private sector, ministries, agencies and development partners were all in attendance.

To begin the meeting, Qahhorzoda Fayziddin Sattor, the Executive Secretary of the Consultative Council and Chairman of the State Committee on Investments and State Property Management, reported on the implementation progress of the council’s past decisions. At the sixteenth session, the Consultative Council made decisions on the development of the agriculture sector, and identified ways to improve the investment climate, to promote agribusiness, to analyze taxation policy, to advertize domestic products through mass media and to improve Tajikistan’s international indicators.

As per the objective of implementation of the Laws of Tajikistan ‘On Investment’ and ‘On Inspection of the Enterprises’, more decisions were taken including the international experience and has adopted a new edition. A Coordination Council was set up for facilitating the law ‘On Monitoring the Enterprises of Entrepreneurs’ which further decreases the burden of taxes and brings more support for new enterprises.

By decree of the government, the ‘Action Plan on Support of the Industrial Sector and the Promotion of Local Enterprises and Development of Local Production for the year 2016 – 2018 from 27 of July 2016’ was approved.

The second item on the agenda was the energy sector. Mr. Usmonaly Usmonzoda, the Minister of Energy and Water Resources of the Republic of Tajikistan gave a presentation on the energy sector including an analysis and draft of the Action Plan, featuring specific recommendations of the energy sectors, generating and providing the country with high quality energy and resources.

The third item on the agenda concerned tourism. Mr. Abdullozoda Ahtam Rustam, the Chairman of the Committee for Youth, Sports and Tourism under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan, reported on the progress of the implementation of the Government Action Plan for improving the investment climate in the tourism sector.

Regarding the final issue of the agenda, Mr. Qahhorzoda Fayziddin Sattor proposed that the next session of the Consultative Council should consider investment and business climate issues in the bank and finance sectors, and the modernization of public services for businesses. The selection of the topic for the agenda was unanimously approved by members of the Council.

During the session, Muzaffar Saymuddinov, the Director of “Kafolat” LLC., Komiljon Ibrohimov, the Director of “Bark Sokhtmon Loihakash” LLC., and Mr. C.C.Yu the representative of the Asian Development Bank discussed new recommendations for the improvement of the business climate of Tajikistan.

The Founder of Peace and National Unity, the Leader of the Nation, the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon, expressed his opinion on the development of entrepreneurship in the country, job creation, the increase of exports and the role and contribution of private sector in the economy of the republic.

The major point he stressed was the necessity of speeding up work in the direction of economic development, the effective use of electricity, manufacturing and its support, and achieving energy independence for Tajikistan, tourism development and supporting the hand-made activity in the country.

The Founder of Peace and National Unity, the Leader of the Nation, and the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon, who also serves as the Chairman of the Consultative Council, closed the session by instructing the ministries and agencies present to work closely with entrepreneurs while working on implementing the decisions made during the session.

For more information, please contact the Secretariat of the Consultative Council on Improvement of Investment Climate under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan by phone at (44) 610-60-04, email at secretariat@investmentcouncil.tj or by visiting our website: www.investmentcouncil.tj.

As part of the celebration of the second anniversary of the national Day of Entrepreneurs, on October 14 Dushanbe hosted the International Entrepreneurship Forum Dushanbe-2016, entitled “Development of national production - new investment opportunities”.

The annual International Entrepreneurship Forum is organized under the auspices of the Founder of Peace and National Unity – Leader of the nation, the President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon. The Forum represents the most important platform for dialogue between the government and the private sector and is the largest business and investment event in the country.

The Forum hosted the country's senior government officials and foreign official dignitaries, experts and company managers, representatives of the international financial institutions, global and regional enterprises.

The Forum’s objective was to introduce and explore new investment opportunities present in the Republic of Tajikistan, taking into account recent legal reforms. The forum’s topics explored increasing the processing of local raw materials, substitution of imports and the growth of exports. Other issues that received attention include strengthening the foreign direct investment processes.

The opening ceremony started with the speech of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Tajikistan, His Excellency Qohir Rasulzoda, who welcomed the participants and noted that Tajikistan is open for cooperation on the basis of respect and neighborly relations with all states of the region and the world. He stated the country was ready to further raise the level of cooperation for greater economic growth.

National production was the central theme of the Forum, one of the key sectors of the economy that provides the consumer market with domestic goods, export growth, strengthening of the balance of payments and currency exchange rate and contributes to the improvement of people’s standard of living.

While noting economic achievements, panel’s discussions also emphasized the need to address outstanding issues, such as simplifying administrative procedures regulating exports, establishing a comprehensive support framework for domestic enterprises, reconsidering the certain bonus payments and better attracting investors in the sale of products during the crisis. Other issues raised included providing financial support, optimizing customs and tax privileges.

High-profile foreign dignitaries and investors attended the Forum: the prince of Saudi Arabia, His Royal Highness Faisal bin Abdulaziz bin Abdulmajid bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Regional Director of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in Central Asia Mr. McCain Neil and Regional Leader for Telecommunications at the World Bank Mr. Sector Mr. Rajendra Singh. Among prominent corporations, participants who spoke at the Forum included Glencore International CEO Mr. Ivan Glasenberg, President of the China-Tajikistan Mining Company Mr. Jiang Rong Huang, Senior Vice President of Qatar Airways Mr. Ali Al Rais, and Vice-President of Airbus Mr. Allen Keith.

The Forum’s main work was organized into six panel sessions

The first panel dedicated to the investment-based economic policies. At the panel, the 2030 National Development Strategy was presented, highlighting the contribution of the private sector to achieve its strategic goals. The role of the free economic zones was considered for the development of national manufacturing as well as prospects for the development of the four FEZ were discussed.

The second panel, "Import substitution - new business and investment opportunities in Tajikistan" touched on the policy issues and opportunities to expand production of competitive products and help businesses find new markets. The panel explored the existing incentives to encourage greater domestic production, investment in import-substituting manufacturing capacities.

The energy panel centered on progress towards energy independence and on ways supply businesses with reliable energy services. Panelists presented the progress achieved so far on the implementation of strategic priorities, market-based reforms in the energy sector, and energy tariff policies. New areas were presented, including the energy services market and commercialization of heat supply.

The fourth panel explored the developments in the infrastructure and transport sectors. Panelists discussed opportunities and inhibiting issues for regional trade stemming from transport and logistics infrastructure, plans and ways to improve the transit potential of Tajikistan and plans to strengthen border infrastructure. Priorities of the country to achieve broader use of land transport opportunities and ensuring access to sea ports were also discussed.

The Agriculture panel, “Comparative advantages of Tajikistan in agriculture" presented progress on agrarian reform, showcasing a wide range of opportunities in agriculture. Businesses were invite to invest in the sector were opportunity exist to reduce the costs and increase the competitiveness of processed goods.
The tourism dedicated panel presented participants the regulatory improvements in tourism, and support infrastructure developments, which promotes growth of tourism industry. To showcase the existing potential and call for a more efficient use of tourism attractions, panelist presented the case of the Romit Valley in Rasht and Saghirdasht areas in Darvoz districts.

This year, more attention and time was provided for meetings between investors and entrepreneurs, bilateral meetings between businessmen and investors in the B2B format. Ministries and state agencies were available for meetings with the private sector as part of B2G meetings.

In the framework of the Forum a number of memoranda and agreements were signed and a resolution of the Forum was adopted.

Dedicated to the 25-year anniversary of Independence of the Republic of Tajikistan

Conference

“The Role of the Leader of the Nation in the Development of Investment Climate and Business Development”

Republic of Tajikistan, Dushanbe

The National Library

5 August 2016

STATE COMMITTEE ON INVESTMENT AND STATE PROPERTY MANAGEMENT OF THE REPUBLIC

SECRETARIAT OF THE CONSULTATIVE COUNCIL ON IMPROVEMENT OF THE INVESTMENT CLIMATE UNDER THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF TAJIKISTAN

Press Release

5 August 2016, Dushanbe

Today at the National Library, on the occasion of the 25-th anniversary of the independence of Tajikistan a conference was held "The Role of the Leader of the Nation in the Improvement of the Investment Climate and Development of the Private Sector", which gathered state officials, entrepreneurs and investors, both domestic and foreign, business associations and professional organizations.

The First Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Tajikistan Davlatali Said spoke of the unprecedented role of the Founder of Peace and National Unity, the Leader of the Nation the President Emomali Rahmon in establishing the favorable investment climate, development of private initiative and strengthening the regulatory environment to attract greater investments.

According to First Deputy Prime Minister, the first specialized legal act aimed to business activities was the "State program for support and development of business in the Republic of Tajikistan" of 20 February 1998. The first meeting between the state and business community was held on August 11, 2001 at the initiative of the President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon. These early initiatives provided impetus for further reforms and improve business conditions for entrepreneurship.

It was noted that in order to support economic activity, promote investments and support domestic and foreign companies, the state has established the institutional infrastructure, namely the State Committee on Investments and State Property Management, the Consultative Council on Improvement of Investment Climate under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Public-private partnership center, and the State Entrepreneurship Support Fund under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan. These institutions, among others, established the legal framework and defined a number of laws to regulate and support entrepreneurial endeavors.

Davlatali Said noted that on the initiative of the President, reflecting the contribution of entrepreneurs to the national economy, the government has established 14 October as the "Day of Entrepreneurs". At the same time, regular meetings of the President with entrepreneurs and investors, international forums with President’s participation and dialogue between the public and private sectors have become common. This testifies to the attention that the President pays to the improvement of the investment climate and is an unprecedented time since the country’s independence.

The Chairman of the State Committee on Investments and State Property Management of the Republic of Tajikistan Qodiri Qosim, in his greeting speech noted the significance and relevance of the conference. Qodiri Qosim spoke of the 25 years of independence, and the guidance of the Founder of Peace and National Unity - The Leader of the Nation, the President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon in economic development and strengthening cooperation with international partners. During this period, Tajikistan saw the constant increase in foreign investments, the implementation of major regional projects of national significance, establishment of large industrial enterprises and achievement of other important milestones.

The reforms and efforts to improve the investment environment led Tajikistan’s recognition for steady progress in regulatory, legal and administrative areas.

The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Committee at the Majlisi Namoyandogon Majlisi Oli of the Republic of Tajikistan Sharif Rahimzoda said that the Parliament, on the guidance of the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, has made significant contribution to the formation of the legal framework regulating the economic activities in Tajikistan.

The adoption of the Constitution has created a foundation for investment and business activities, guaranteeing entrepreneurs’ basic of rights and legitimate interests. From this foundation, the regulatory framework has been harmonized with international standards and further legal instruments were subsequently adopted to promote entrepreneurial endeavors.

The Director of the Economics and Demography Institute at the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tajikistan Lutfullo Saidmurod said that much has been written historical role of the President Emomali Rahmon in the restoration and strengthening of the constitutional order in the Republic of Tajikistan and in transitioning of the country from planned to market economy; he noted however, that the President’s role in the formation and development of a market economy as the basis for the development of a modern democratic society, so far not been evaluated in detail.

The Head "Agro Sitabr" LLC Odinaev Mirjon expressed gratitude to the President of the Republic of Tajikistan for the support and continuing attention and said that as a result of state support his company was the first to introduce modern Italian technology in orchard management. On the basis of new technologies, the company plans to establish gardens on an area of ​​20 hectares, to recruit local experts following their education abroad and, together with the Tajik State Agrarian University, to establish a joint department of Innovative Technologies in Agriculture. Odinaev Mirjon noted that on October 27, 2015, an industrial and educational area of ​​the garden was officially opened during the visit of the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rakhmon.

The Deputy of Chairman of the National Bank of Tajikistan Jamoliddin Nuraliev noted the contribution of the Founder of Peace and National Unity - The Leader of the Nation, the President Emomali Rahmon in the establishment and strengthening of the banking system, and creating conditions for the broadening of the financial services. He noted that in a relatively short period the country has established a sound foundation of banking laws and regulations.

As noted, the early economic and financial initiatives, including the midterm economic development program, restructuring the banking system, provisions on banking secrecy and protection of investments and other measures have helped to overcome the economic decline of the 1990s and provide the basis for a new national currency, the Somoni, adopted on October 30, 2000.

Chairman of the Tax Committee under the Government of Tajikistan Nusratullo Davlatzoda noted that in accordance with the guidelines of the Founder of Peace and National Unity, the Leader of the Nation, the President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon in his address to the Parliament on April 20 2011, called to introduce changes to Tax Code in order to improve the investment climate. As the result the current Tax Code introduced a number of changes. In particular, the number of different taxes was reduced to 50%, tax returns to 41%, the number of tax returns up to 86%, and the total amount of tax was reduced to 43% of the previous tax regime. For small and medium-sized enterprises, the new Tax Code provides more than 240 indulgences and privileges.

Acting Director of the oil company “TK Oil” Hu Geding expressed sincere gratitude on behalf of the management company Dong Ying Heli Investment and Development Co. to the President of Tajikistan for the continuing support of the enterprise. He noted that the favorable investment environment allowed the company to make its first investment - an oil refinery plant with the capacity to process 1.2 million ton of crude per year - in the Dangara Free Economic Zone. The project’s US$80 million first stage, involves refinery plant with a processing capacity of 500,000 tons of crude oil. Currently, the construction of the plant is mostly complete, with the official opening scheduled for 9 September, the 25th anniversary of the Tajikistan’s independence on of this year.

The Deputy Director of the Center for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan Farida Muminova spoke of the role of the President Emomali Rahmon in preventing the degradation of the economy in the early period of independence. Between 1995 and 2000, the government has implemented a program of economic reforms to stabilize the economy, and subsequent adoption of the National Development Strategies allowed steady improvement in the living standards.

She concluded that fostering entrepreneurship in the regions was an important tool for addressing employment and raising income level. Under the leadership of the President, the joint effort of state agencies and entrepreneurs to increase the productivity of entrepreneurs should become a key priority for the economy.

The host of the conference, the Chairman of the State Committee on Investments and State Property Management of the Republic of Tajikistan Qodiri Qosim said that dialogue, meetings with investors, and organization of various activities at the national and international level, investment missions along with President’s official state abroad, has now become a tradition.

The Head of the Consultative Council on Improvement of Investment Climate spoke of the initiatives of the Founder of Peace and National Unity, Leader of the Nation, the President of the Republic Emomali Rahmon in fundamental reforms of various sectors of the economy. The establishment of the Consultative Council to promote direct dialogue between the state and entrepreneurs was one example of such reforms. A dialogue with business community helped to incorporate the views of the private sector in the reform process, including at the stages of development, approval and implementation of legal acts.

Other forms of dialogue between the state and the private sector at the highest level include the President’s meetings with investors, including with business diaspora abroad, high level business forums and exhibitions.

After participants’ speeches, the Head of the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises Uljabaeva M., the Director of LLC Somon Capital Mahshulov M. and others expressed their observations.

In conclusion, the following recommendations were adopted:

1. Scientific and practical aspects of the constructive role of the Leader of the Nation in the development of investment and business climate should be made available for wider circles.

2. Relationship between scientists and private sector experts on the one hand, and the state agencies on the other hand should be strengthened and scientific developments should be widely used in daily activities.

3. All relevant agencies should take appropriate measures to eliminate existing barriers for businesses and promote business activities.

4. To support entrepreneurs, it is recommended that new loan products are developed and the system of financial, fiscal, customs and administrative incentives be further expanded.

5. Considering the contribution of entrepreneurs to the national economy, develop and establish a Certificate "Entrepreneur of honor".

For further information, please contact the Secretariat of the Consultative Council on improvement of investment climate under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan by phone 44 610-60-04 or by e-mail, secretariat@investmentcouncil.tj, or visit our website: www.investmentcouncil.tj

This morning, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Tajikistan opened the Sixteenth Session of the Consultative Council on Improvement of Investment Climate under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan.

The session began with the report from Qodiri Qosim, the Executive Secretary of the Council and Chairman of the State Committee on Investments and State Property Management, on the progress of the implementation of the Council’s past decisions. At the previous session, the Council made decisions on the development of industry and support for national producers, on lowering export costs for competitive products, and increasing access to electricity for businesses. The Fifteenth Session also addressed the development of the insurance market, a timely review of requests from entrepreneurs, the stable development of businesses and investments inflows as well as the establishment of Entrepreneurship Day.

It was noted that 14 October 2015, the first anniversary of Entrepreneurship Day, with the participation of the Founder of Peace and National Unity, the Leader of the Nation, the President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rakhmon, was marked by a number of business events and culminated in the International Business Forum Dushanbe - 2015, “Entrepreneurship and Investment for Sustainable Development”.

The Secretary of the Council, Qodiri Qosim, noted that in response to the decisions of the Council, the Government developed the Laws of the Republic of Tajikistan on Investment, On Inspection of Business Entities, and the Government Action Plan for the development of the secondary securities market and stock exchanges, taking into account best international practices. He observed that the draft Government Action Plan on industry and support for entrepreneurs in manufacturing had been finalized in coordination with the relevant ministries and agencies and presented to the Government for consideration.

On the second agenda item dedicated to the agricultural sector, Mr. Izatullo Sattori, the Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Tajikistan, reported that an inter-ministerial working group under the Ministry of Agriculture had completed a comprehensive analysis of the agricultural sector to identify ways to improve the investment climate and promote agribusiness. The working group elaborated 104 specific recommendations and a 39-point plan of action, which will help to improve the investment climate in the agricultural sector and promote agribusiness development.

The third agenda item of the Council session addressed taxation. Mr. Nematullo Hikmatullozoda, the Minister of Economic Development and Trade of the Republic of Tajikistan, on the basis of a preliminary analysis of the taxation system, highlighted the existing shortcomings in tax administration and outlined possible ways to address them.

Ms. Kerstin Laabs, KFW Director in Tajikistan and the deputy Head of the Donor Coordination Council representing Development Partners noted the importance of the tax system evaluation and expressed the readiness of development partners to support a detailed study of the tax system and development of specific recommendations for the government.

Mr. Qodiri Qosim, summarizing key points and decisions from the Session, proposed to consider investment and business climate issues in the transport sector at the upcoming session of the Consultative Council. The selection of the topic for the agenda was unanimously approved by members of the Council.

Representatives from the private sector and Development Partners also made respective presentations.

Ms. Nabot Dodkhudoeva, the Head of LLC Madina and Partners, spoke on the role of the private sector in implementing the previous decisions of the Council: creating jobs through the establishment of small and medium-sized enterprises, translating local resources into final products, and the full processing of fruit and vegetables.

Mr. Richard Jones, Head of the Representative Office of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in Tajikistan, praised the role of the Consultative Council as a public-private dialogue platform to improve the investment and business climate in the country. EBRD’s contribution to the development of the private sector, through financing infrastructure projects, including in energy, industry and the financial services, was also noted.

Further, Mr. Shorauf Sharahmatov, the Head of the Agribusiness Association of Tajikistan, noted the potential adverse impact of the draft Farming Accounting Regulation which is currently under development. The regulation, by introducing additional expenses and representing a distraction for farmers, would likely be detrimental to the efficiency of the agricultural sector.

Mr. Viorel Gutu, Head of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization in Tajikistan, spoke of the need for agricultural reform across all value-chains, for the introduction of various financial incentives and for the expansion of ‘extension services’ to attract investment for agribusiness. In addition, a greater commercialization of seed, equipment and agricultural insurance would help to support farmers. Mr. Gutu also emphasised the need to strengthen the national Food Safety System and further reduce barriers to trade.

On the conclusion of the session, the Prime Minister tasked the responsible Ministries and Agencies with implementing the corresponding provisions of the decisions taken by the Council.

4 March 2016, Khorog, Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO), the Chairman of the State Committee on Investment and State Property Management, esteemed Qodiri Qosim met with entrepreneurs of GBAO. During the speech, he spoke of the initiative of the Founder of Peace and National Unity, Leader of Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan, His Excellency Emomali Rahmon on strengthening the public-private dialogue and improving the investment and entrepreneurial climate. Qodiri Qosim also mentioned the reform results achieved so far.

During the meeting, it was noted that from the total number of businesses operating in the country, 3,997 operated in GBAO and that number was 2,3% greater than in 2014.

In 2015, financial institutions provided 126,078 thousand TJS in loans to local businesses.

The State Unitary Fund “Entrepreneurship Support Fund under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan” financed 16 investment projects in GBAO in the amount of 8.53 million TJS.

In the meeting, Qodiri Qosim invited the entrepreneurs to contribute to the development of domestic production, increase production of import-substitution and export-oriented products, and supply the domestic market with competitive products, finds new economic levers to export domestic products to the world markets.

In general, entrepreneurs raised variety of issued related to business environment and regulatory requirements, including further simplification of import-export and transit procedures, the simplification of the tax administration, and registering and closing businesses. Other questions and issues related to access to resources, namely greater access to finance, attracting foreign investors, simplifying access to land for industrial purposes, opportunities for export of locally produced good, and access to reliable electricity supply. Other businesses mentioned the need to put in place international quality standards and other topical issues faced today by the private sector.

In the result of meetings the Protocol will be signed and send for implementation to the ministries and agencies.

Authorities invited the private sector representatives, in this time of crisis, to understand and take advantage of the supports of the Leader of Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan, His Excellency Emomali Rahmon and the Government of the country to impart their knowledge, skills and opportunities to grow domestic production, increase production of import-substituting and export-oriented products, and supply the domestic market with competitive products.

The meeting was attended by local enterpreneurs, Chairman and representatives of State Committee on Investment and State Property Management, Tax Committee under the Government of the country, State Committee of Land Management and Geodesy, Tojikstandart Agency, the Customs Service, Secretariat of the ConsultativeCouncil on Improvement of Investment Climate under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan and the representatives of other ministries and agencies. 

3 March 2016, Nurobod, the Chairman of State Committee on Investment and State Property Management of the Republic of Tajikistan met with the enterpreneurs of Rasht, Nurobod, Tojikobod, Tavildara and Jirgatol districts. First, esteemed Qodiri Qosim stressed the effort made by the state to provide a favorable environment for public private dialogue in the country, which was an initiative of the Founder of Peace and National Unity, Leader of Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan, His Excellency Emomali Rahmon.

During his speech, esteemed Qodiri Qosim described the results of reforms and other measures to support of entepreneurship in the country and in the Rasht Valley in particular, and effort to strengthen the public-private dialogue.

Regarding the entrepreneurial activity of the region, he noted a continued growth in the number of operating businesses in the Rasht Valley. From the total number of business entities operating in the country, 964 belong to Nurobod district or a 2% compared to 2014 figures. In Rasht district, 3,005 businesses operated, which was 16.6% greater than in the previous year. 1,076 businesses belong to the Tojikobod district, which in comparison with 2014 increased by 29.2%. In Jirgatol district, 1,887 businesses operated, which was 11.5% greater than in 2014. Finally, Tavildara had 613 businesses. This was 12.2% more than in 2014.

Bank and credit organizations provided 5.78 million TJS to businesses in Nurobod district, 25.55 million TJS for businesses in Rasht district, and 7.74 million TJS for businesses in Tojikobod district. In Jirgatol banks and other credit organizations extended loans in the amount of 10.439 million TJS and in Tavildara – in the amount of 4.87 million TJS.

In 2015, the “Entrepreneurship Support Fund under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan” financed 3 projects in Nurobod in the amount of 1.55 million TJS, 2 projects in Tojikobod in the amount 840 thousand TJS and 1 project in the amount of 125 thousand TJS in Tavildara district.