Mahbuba Qurbonalieva, director of Central Asia
Institute Tajikistan, and her daughter share a glance
on a short break. Like many Tajik mothers, Mahbuba
firmly believes that her children’s generation will
have more access to secondary education, more
jobs, and better technology than her own.
Berdov Farhodbek, the principal of Pish Primary
School, looks out at the mountainous landscape
of the Gund valley, the harsh climate reflected
in the lines of his weathered face. Central Asia
Institute Tajikistan rebuilt his school in 2017.
The old school’s roof leaked so severely that
the children were left to huddle in corners every
time it rained. Now the children are thriving in
the safe, bright, and warm classrooms of their
new school.
In a kindergarten close to the
Afghan-Tajik border, a young
girl evades naptime to satisfy
her curiosity. Most of the
schools are equipped with
little metal beds so that young
children have a place to sleep
during the day—a holdover
from Soviet times.
10 | JOURNEY OF HOPE
CENTRAL ASIA INSTITUTE