Journey of Hope 2017 journey-of-hope-2017 | Page 14

having trouble making ends meet. Young,
able-bodied men look to neighboring
countries, mostly Russia, for opportuni-
ties. In Russia men can earn eight times as
much as at home. When they leave, every-
thing the men would normally do — build
the houses, tend the crops, fix anything
that breaks — falls to the women, to be
piled on top of their already substantial
duties of cooking, raising the children,
and looking after livestock.
A 2013 study by the Institute for East and
Southeast European Studies revealed just
how much this lifestyle impacts the country:
James Thaden is the
executive director of
Central Asia Institute.
He was born and raised
in Washington, but
spent much of his adult
life in Philadelphia, New
York, and Tennessee.
Prior to joining Central
Asia Institute, he worked
as development director for the Discovery
Place, where he played a key role in that
organization’s turnaround into a sustainable
social enterprise. Prior to his social enterprise
work, which he calls his “second career,”
Thaden was a successful entrepreneur.
Jed Williamson is
the past president
of Sterling College
in Vermont and of
the American Alpine
Club. He has been the
editor of “Accidents
in North American
Mountaineering”
since 1974 and is the
co-author of the Association for Experiential
Education’s Accreditation Standards for
Adventure Programs. He has been a director,
program director, and instructor for U.S.
Outward Bound, executive director of the
United States Biathlon Association, and has
served on several nonprofit boards. Jed has
been a member of CAI’s board of directors
since July 2012. He became chair of CAI’s
board of directors in 2016.
12 | JOURNEY OF HOPE
Thirty percent of all households
had at least one family member who
had moved abroad for work reasons
between 1991 and 2011. A fifth of the house-
holds (20 percent) reported that at least one
member of their household was currently abroad.
Taken together, every second household
in Tajikistan (52.3 percent) is or has been
involved in labor migration activities since
Tajikistan became independent.
While it is difficult to carry on with loved
ones far away, studies have shown that fami-
lies that have access to remittances typically
fare better than families without access. For
poorer families, between 50 and 80 percent
of their annual income comes from remit-
tances sent home from family members
working abroad.
A lot rests on the state of foreign econo-
mies. Declining remittances cut into dispos-
able incomes, forcing cuts in expenditures.
In conjunction with the declining strength of
the Russian ruble, remittances have fluctuated
wildly for about three years. The World Bank
released a report in 2015, predicting that the
downturn in Russia and devalued ruble would
decrease migrants’ remittance transfers by 40
percent. Unemployed Tajikistani men would
be forced to return home in droves. The re-
port was correct, and although conditions
have improved since 2015, they remain dire.
The future of remittances remain unstable, at
the mercy of ever-changing markets.
Education and healthcare are among the
first areas to suffer in situations like this.
When 50 to 80 percent of your income dis-
appears, paying for groceries takes priority
over buying textbooks, notebooks, pencils,
backpacks, uniforms, and paying school fees.
Communities don’t have enough money to
pay for school repairs, so school buildings
damaged in snow storms or earthquakes
can’t be repaired. Advanced education
seems like a luxury. With parents unable to
help, students square off with one another to
compete for rare scholarships.
While CAI can’t influence the ruble or bol-
ster the job market, we can support projects
that would otherwise be cut. We can repair
school buildings in poor communities, we
can provide supplies so students can get the
most out of their classes, and we can provide
scholarships for advanced education. Parents
and students should never have to choose
between feeding their families and getting an
education. Both are essential.
We can also continue to provide services
for women. As the backbone of the coun-
try, they need all the help that they can get.
We will offer teacher training programs for
them, support early childhood development
programs where their children can go while
they work, and improve water supply and
sanitation in remote areas to cut down on
sickness and the time it takes them to fetch
water. This year, 56 percent of our Tajikistan
program beneficiaries were women. We
hope to do the same or more next year.
WHAT IT’S REALLY LIKE
The truth is that you and I can watch his-
torical documentaries, read books written by
experts, and even visit these countries, but
the reality is that we can never really know
what it’s like to live the lives of our benefi-
ciaries. Our in-country partners — Star of
Knowledge, Marcopolo Social Services and
Reconstruction Organization, Central Asia
Institute Gilgit, Central Asia Educational
Trust, and Central Asia Institute Tajikistan
— on the other hand, are a part of the com-
munities we serve. They, more than anyone,
can help us understand the needs of the peo-
ple we support. They are the eyes and ears
on the ground, always on the lookout for the
best ways to help, the best programs to offer.
Wakil Karimi, the director of our largest
Afghanistan partner operation, told us the
other day, “These are our children. We can-
not stop. It is our duty to help our people.”
It is our duty to help where we can.
When people ask us, “What is it like to
work in Central Asia?” and we tell them
about the many obstacles and complex
scenarios we have to work through, the
next question is always “Why?” Our
answer is simple: it is because they are
human beings. They are amazing, dedi-
cated, hopeful people, and we cannot in
good conscience abandon them to their
present condition. The road is hard, but
in the end you and I can be reassured
that no crisis is unsolvable, no amount of
assistance too small, no act of kindness
without its reward. This is all the “why”
that we need to keep working. n
CENTRAL ASIA INSTITUTE