World Mountain Forum 2018
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btNgN6zFZu4
Almost one billion people live in mountain areas, accounting for 13% of the world’s population. Mountainous regions are particularly sensitive to the effects of global and climate change, jeopardising many of the critical goods and services they provide – an area that covers 22 percent of the world’s land surface, and provides 60 to 80 percent of the Earth’s fresh water.
The University of Central Asia (UCA) and the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic co-organised the fourth World Mountain Forum (WMF 2018), with support from the Government of Switzerland and the Aga Khan Foundation United Kingdom, from October 23-26 2018 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. It brought together 300 participants from the global community across complementary sectors and different types of agencies including community members, civil society, academic, and government institutions, to share experiences and best practices, and develop integrated solutions to existing challenges of sustainable development in mountain regions.
Read more: https://ucentralasia.org/Resources/It...
Youth Mountain Forum 2018: https://ucentralasia.org/Resources/It...
AKDN - Kyrgyztan - Institutional Activities
New investment opportunities announced for small and medium business in south of Kyrgyzstan
AKIPRESS.COM - Accelerate Prosperity, a new global initiative of the Aga Khan Development Network in Central and South Asia, has announced a new round of investments for promising small and medium enterprises located in Osh city and in Aravan distrtict (Osh region). The investments have a value between $10,000 and $50,000 per a project and will be accompanied by an eight-week business acceleration program to attract additional investment and speed up growth.
The investments will be awarded through a competitive process. Applicants have until March, 5/2019 to submit their proposal. The investment committee will however evaluate and analyze the business projects, without waiting for the completion of the deadline for receiving applications.
The main criteria for investments selection are that the applicants have at least one year of business experience, a confirmed annual income of an at least of 100,000 soms, a demonstrable growth potential, and be active in one of the following sector: textiles, manufacturing, agriculture, tourism, information technology, and education. Priority will be given to enterprises where customers, suppliers, and/or employees are (or will be) youth under the age of 29 years old. Priority will also be given to women-led enterprises.
Accelerate Prosperity in Kyrgyzstan is co-financed by USAID under the Demilgeluu Jashtar project. This five year, $5 million project is designed to develop entrepreneurship among youth.
https://akipress.com/news:616210/
AKIPRESS.COM - Accelerate Prosperity, a new global initiative of the Aga Khan Development Network in Central and South Asia, has announced a new round of investments for promising small and medium enterprises located in Osh city and in Aravan distrtict (Osh region). The investments have a value between $10,000 and $50,000 per a project and will be accompanied by an eight-week business acceleration program to attract additional investment and speed up growth.
The investments will be awarded through a competitive process. Applicants have until March, 5/2019 to submit their proposal. The investment committee will however evaluate and analyze the business projects, without waiting for the completion of the deadline for receiving applications.
The main criteria for investments selection are that the applicants have at least one year of business experience, a confirmed annual income of an at least of 100,000 soms, a demonstrable growth potential, and be active in one of the following sector: textiles, manufacturing, agriculture, tourism, information technology, and education. Priority will be given to enterprises where customers, suppliers, and/or employees are (or will be) youth under the age of 29 years old. Priority will also be given to women-led enterprises.
Accelerate Prosperity in Kyrgyzstan is co-financed by USAID under the Demilgeluu Jashtar project. This five year, $5 million project is designed to develop entrepreneurship among youth.
https://akipress.com/news:616210/
Elementary school students present self-written book in Bishkek
AKIPRESS.COM - Baitik elementary school kids today presented a book they wrote, which will be available for use in the National Library for Children and Youth in Bishkek. Teachers, parents, representatives of the library and the Ministry of Education and Science participated in the event.
The book titled "Baitik Kids" is a collection of stories and short poems that were gathered among kids who live in Baitik village of Chui oblast. The poems and stories are about friendship, motherland, tolerance, nature and animals. The publication and professional illustrations were made possible by the Aga Khan Foundation Kyrgyz Republic and were funded by the Aga Khan Academy within the framework of the Family Reading Programme.
“We are delighted to promote our flagship Early Childhood Development (ECD) programme through the implementation of such initiatives. I can not stress this enough, but when kids get to see the pieces they have written themselves published – poems, essays and short stories – they become eager to achieve even bigger results, and they read even more,” Burulai Aitikulova, Senior Education Advisor with the Aga Khan Foundation, said. She noted that by the time the programme finished their book contest among Baitik children aged seven to ten years, they had collected 20 of their best works written in different genres.
The Aga Khan Foundation has published more than 55 Kyrgyz language children's illustrated books since 2006, which are used by more than 2,200 schools in the country.
https://akipress.com/news:616277
AKIPRESS.COM - Baitik elementary school kids today presented a book they wrote, which will be available for use in the National Library for Children and Youth in Bishkek. Teachers, parents, representatives of the library and the Ministry of Education and Science participated in the event.
The book titled "Baitik Kids" is a collection of stories and short poems that were gathered among kids who live in Baitik village of Chui oblast. The poems and stories are about friendship, motherland, tolerance, nature and animals. The publication and professional illustrations were made possible by the Aga Khan Foundation Kyrgyz Republic and were funded by the Aga Khan Academy within the framework of the Family Reading Programme.
“We are delighted to promote our flagship Early Childhood Development (ECD) programme through the implementation of such initiatives. I can not stress this enough, but when kids get to see the pieces they have written themselves published – poems, essays and short stories – they become eager to achieve even bigger results, and they read even more,” Burulai Aitikulova, Senior Education Advisor with the Aga Khan Foundation, said. She noted that by the time the programme finished their book contest among Baitik children aged seven to ten years, they had collected 20 of their best works written in different genres.
The Aga Khan Foundation has published more than 55 Kyrgyz language children's illustrated books since 2006, which are used by more than 2,200 schools in the country.
https://akipress.com/news:616277
Aga Khan Development Network in Kyrgyzstan
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9& ... oB8wLT0bYA
For over 15 years the Aga Khan Development Network has supported the establishment of institutions and programmes to improve the quality of life of peoples in the Kyrgyz Republic.
The University of Central Asia (UCA) is world class centre for knowledge and learning, connecting isolated rural communities with the global community and building the human capital needed for modern economies and stable governance. UCA brings with it the broader commitment and partnership of the AKDN.
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9& ... oB8wLT0bYA
For over 15 years the Aga Khan Development Network has supported the establishment of institutions and programmes to improve the quality of life of peoples in the Kyrgyz Republic.
The University of Central Asia (UCA) is world class centre for knowledge and learning, connecting isolated rural communities with the global community and building the human capital needed for modern economies and stable governance. UCA brings with it the broader commitment and partnership of the AKDN.
Medina Makenova: Reading for children in Kyrgyzstan
In 2013, we produced this short video about the Reading for Children Programme in Kyrgyzstan, whose aim is to help pre-school age children grow into more confident and accomplished learners. Recently we caught up with Medina Makenova and her family from Achakaiyndy Village, Naryn Oblast (the least accessible part of Kyrgyzstan separated from the rest of the country by high mountain ranges), whose story was featured in this video. A young kindergartener then, Medina is now a high-achieving 12-year old student whose favorite activities include reading to her baby brother, Nurdan; running the “book hospital” at school that ensures that classmates repair and treat their books with respect; studying foreign languages; and thinking of becoming a doctor one day in order to provide care for others. When asked about his daughter’s evolution these last six years, Medina’s father made a clear connection between the early reading programme and her learning achievements to date. He added: “There are benefits of parents reading to their children beyond the child's performance, too. It's one of the most pleasurable activities that you do with your child – there's physical closeness... and it's probably the most unhurried time that children have with their parents and it is focused on them.”
Below are the interviews with Medina and her father to see how things have progressed over the last six years.
Photos and more...
https://www.akdn.org/our-stories/medina ... kyrgyzstan
In 2013, we produced this short video about the Reading for Children Programme in Kyrgyzstan, whose aim is to help pre-school age children grow into more confident and accomplished learners. Recently we caught up with Medina Makenova and her family from Achakaiyndy Village, Naryn Oblast (the least accessible part of Kyrgyzstan separated from the rest of the country by high mountain ranges), whose story was featured in this video. A young kindergartener then, Medina is now a high-achieving 12-year old student whose favorite activities include reading to her baby brother, Nurdan; running the “book hospital” at school that ensures that classmates repair and treat their books with respect; studying foreign languages; and thinking of becoming a doctor one day in order to provide care for others. When asked about his daughter’s evolution these last six years, Medina’s father made a clear connection between the early reading programme and her learning achievements to date. He added: “There are benefits of parents reading to their children beyond the child's performance, too. It's one of the most pleasurable activities that you do with your child – there's physical closeness... and it's probably the most unhurried time that children have with their parents and it is focused on them.”
Below are the interviews with Medina and her father to see how things have progressed over the last six years.
Photos and more...
https://www.akdn.org/our-stories/medina ... kyrgyzstan
BBC World Challenge Jailoo AKF ECD
When AKF learned that many rural Kyrgyz children were missing out on kindergarten during the annual migration to the high pastures, for four to five months a year, it started a programme to bring early childhood education to the mountains.
Video at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrJL9z_258Y
When AKF learned that many rural Kyrgyz children were missing out on kindergarten during the annual migration to the high pastures, for four to five months a year, it started a programme to bring early childhood education to the mountains.
Video at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrJL9z_258Y
Google translation of the article:
https://mfa.gov.kg/en/Main-menu/Press-s ... a-aga-hana
Promising areas of interaction between Kyrgyzstan and the Aga Khan Development Network were discussed.
oday, on July 2, 2019, in Bishkek, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic, Chingiz Aidarbekov, met with the Head of the Aga Khan Development Network Office in the Kyrgyz Republic (AKDN) Shamshma Kassim-Lakha.
The parties discussed issues of cooperation and promising areas of cooperation between Kyrgyzstan and the AKDN, in particular in the socio-economic sphere, in the fields of education, health care, and the development of small and medium-sized businesses.
It is noted that the ongoing programs of the AKDN in the Kyrgyz Republic, aimed at supporting the development of mountain regions, promote the implementation of the Decree of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Zheenbekov on announcing 2019 the Year of Regional Development and Digitalization.
Minister C. Aidarbekov expressed the hope that AKDN projects and programs will further contribute to the sustainable development of the Kyrgyz Republic.
https://mfa.gov.kg/en/Main-menu/Press-s ... a-aga-hana
Promising areas of interaction between Kyrgyzstan and the Aga Khan Development Network were discussed.
oday, on July 2, 2019, in Bishkek, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic, Chingiz Aidarbekov, met with the Head of the Aga Khan Development Network Office in the Kyrgyz Republic (AKDN) Shamshma Kassim-Lakha.
The parties discussed issues of cooperation and promising areas of cooperation between Kyrgyzstan and the AKDN, in particular in the socio-economic sphere, in the fields of education, health care, and the development of small and medium-sized businesses.
It is noted that the ongoing programs of the AKDN in the Kyrgyz Republic, aimed at supporting the development of mountain regions, promote the implementation of the Decree of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Zheenbekov on announcing 2019 the Year of Regional Development and Digitalization.
Minister C. Aidarbekov expressed the hope that AKDN projects and programs will further contribute to the sustainable development of the Kyrgyz Republic.
Video Quote: MHI on AKDN Initiatives in Central Asia
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IevpnzPtLfQ
Speech by His Highness the Aga Khan at the Plenary Session of the Bishkek Global Mountain Summit, Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, 31 October 2002. Read full speech:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IevpnzPtLfQ
Speech by His Highness the Aga Khan at the Plenary Session of the Bishkek Global Mountain Summit, Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, 31 October 2002. Read full speech:
Video Quote: MHI on Knowledge and Research Skills for Mountain Societies
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rTQkZTtjGk
Speech by His Highness the Aga Khan at the Plenary Session of the Bishkek Global Mountain Summit, Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, 31 October 2002.
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rTQkZTtjGk
Speech by His Highness the Aga Khan at the Plenary Session of the Bishkek Global Mountain Summit, Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, 31 October 2002.
Baisal: Going from unemployment to dream job
Growing up in Jalal-Abad, the Kyrgyz Republic, Baisal spent his childhood with school friends and helping his mother care for his two younger siblings. His favorite memories, however, featured admiring his mother’s paintings that seemingly came to life in their living room.
Baisal was always drawn to the arts, but there were few opportunities for him to make a life as an artist in Jalal-Abad, a region dependent on agriculture. Any jobs were scarce, let alone ones aligned with one’s passion. In the Kyrgyz Republic, one in six people have migrated abroad for better opportunities.
Graduating into a hard reality
As a teenager, Baisal recognised this harsh reality. His single mother had a small salary from working at the local theatre, and struggled to provide for her three children. As the eldest child, Baisal enrolled in a technical college for programming with one goal in mind: to help his family become self-sufficient.
Yet even with a programming degree, Baisal was unable to find a position where he could apply his skills after graduation. Baisal says that “somehow, even with my two years studying programming, I did not have the skills that employers were looking for. It was really hard for me to find a job with no previous work experience and with no advanced degree.”
Baisal’s experience is not unique. More than one in five youths in the Kyrgyz Republic are jobless, according to experts’ estimates. Some disillusioned young people leave behind the dreams they once had. Tens of thousands of young people like Baisal have few options for supporting themselves. The Aga Khan Foundation is working to change that picture.
A new opportunity
Baisal found an alternative when he heard about an artistic apprenticeship programme offered in Jalal-Abad through the USAID-funded Demilgeluu Jashtar (Youth Initiative), managed primarily by the Aga Khan Foundation’s Mountain Societies Development Support Programme. This programme aims to help Kyrgyzstan’s workforce, particularly youth, fulfill their potential by equipping them with highly sought-after job skills.
In a three-month design course, Baisal gained graphic design skills from experts. Through his hard work, he quickly learned the intricacies of painting and drawing and the fundamentals of graphic design.
The training programme was, he says, “really eye-opening for me, because I did not know that there was a field where I could find a good job that used my love of art as well as my technical programming skills.”
Combining skills with passion
Now, at 19, Baisal has a leg up thanks to the training, and is working as a graphic designer. His new job is a perfect match for him: it combines his passion for art with his skills as a programmer. Whenever his fellow graphic designers or colleagues have problems with coding or their IT systems, they come to Baisal for help.
Baisal’s mother says that she is “incredibly proud of what my son has accomplished. I talk to him every day and see that he is so happy and fulfilled in this new job. I think it is so amazing that he has been able to find an opportunity that allows him to make a good living and support his little siblings with their schooling—and is something that he loves to do as well!”
Dreams for a bright future
Baisal’s success has fuelled his bigger dreams for the future. He continues to study programming and graphic design independently, keeping up to date with new developments in the field. He hopes to save money and eventually apply to universities and get his Bachelor’s degree in programming, to further advance his skills and potential.
By 2021, at least 900 more youth are expected to benefit from similar vocational training programmes. Tens of thousands of others will benefit from new high school courses on International Computer Driving License (ICDL), a computer literacy certification programme, alongside seed capital for youth-led startups, innovation centers for business growth, and newly-created life skills centers.
https://www.akdn.org/our-stories/baisal ... -dream-job
Growing up in Jalal-Abad, the Kyrgyz Republic, Baisal spent his childhood with school friends and helping his mother care for his two younger siblings. His favorite memories, however, featured admiring his mother’s paintings that seemingly came to life in their living room.
Baisal was always drawn to the arts, but there were few opportunities for him to make a life as an artist in Jalal-Abad, a region dependent on agriculture. Any jobs were scarce, let alone ones aligned with one’s passion. In the Kyrgyz Republic, one in six people have migrated abroad for better opportunities.
Graduating into a hard reality
As a teenager, Baisal recognised this harsh reality. His single mother had a small salary from working at the local theatre, and struggled to provide for her three children. As the eldest child, Baisal enrolled in a technical college for programming with one goal in mind: to help his family become self-sufficient.
Yet even with a programming degree, Baisal was unable to find a position where he could apply his skills after graduation. Baisal says that “somehow, even with my two years studying programming, I did not have the skills that employers were looking for. It was really hard for me to find a job with no previous work experience and with no advanced degree.”
Baisal’s experience is not unique. More than one in five youths in the Kyrgyz Republic are jobless, according to experts’ estimates. Some disillusioned young people leave behind the dreams they once had. Tens of thousands of young people like Baisal have few options for supporting themselves. The Aga Khan Foundation is working to change that picture.
A new opportunity
Baisal found an alternative when he heard about an artistic apprenticeship programme offered in Jalal-Abad through the USAID-funded Demilgeluu Jashtar (Youth Initiative), managed primarily by the Aga Khan Foundation’s Mountain Societies Development Support Programme. This programme aims to help Kyrgyzstan’s workforce, particularly youth, fulfill their potential by equipping them with highly sought-after job skills.
In a three-month design course, Baisal gained graphic design skills from experts. Through his hard work, he quickly learned the intricacies of painting and drawing and the fundamentals of graphic design.
The training programme was, he says, “really eye-opening for me, because I did not know that there was a field where I could find a good job that used my love of art as well as my technical programming skills.”
Combining skills with passion
Now, at 19, Baisal has a leg up thanks to the training, and is working as a graphic designer. His new job is a perfect match for him: it combines his passion for art with his skills as a programmer. Whenever his fellow graphic designers or colleagues have problems with coding or their IT systems, they come to Baisal for help.
Baisal’s mother says that she is “incredibly proud of what my son has accomplished. I talk to him every day and see that he is so happy and fulfilled in this new job. I think it is so amazing that he has been able to find an opportunity that allows him to make a good living and support his little siblings with their schooling—and is something that he loves to do as well!”
Dreams for a bright future
Baisal’s success has fuelled his bigger dreams for the future. He continues to study programming and graphic design independently, keeping up to date with new developments in the field. He hopes to save money and eventually apply to universities and get his Bachelor’s degree in programming, to further advance his skills and potential.
By 2021, at least 900 more youth are expected to benefit from similar vocational training programmes. Tens of thousands of others will benefit from new high school courses on International Computer Driving License (ICDL), a computer literacy certification programme, alongside seed capital for youth-led startups, innovation centers for business growth, and newly-created life skills centers.
https://www.akdn.org/our-stories/baisal ... -dream-job
FMFC is the First Financial Partner of EBRD Women in Business Programme
Over 44% of FMFC’s clients are women. FMFC provide financial services to help them succeed in entrepreneurship, livestock and agriculture businesses.
AKDN
The First MicroFinance Company (FMFC) in the Kyrgyz Republic has become the first financial institution in the country to join the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)’s Women in Business programme in Central Asia. The programme supports women’s entrepreneurship in the Kyrgyz Republic as well as in Mongolia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
The EBRD is providing FMFC with a loan of US$1 million for on-lending to women-led micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and will promote women’s entrepreneurship and participation in business by assisting with access to finance, know-how, technical advice and policy dialogue.
FMFC CEO, Stefan Martiniak stated: “Different loan products are regularly developed and offered to women at the most favourable terms in our company. This project will also enable women to implement their projects and carry out their ideas. It will also provide an opportunity to create new working places, thus, promoting the country’s economic growth. We are confident that women present quite a big business potential and, therefore, we are looking forward to strong results from the project”.
The start of the Women in Business programme was announced on February 11th at an official ceremony attended by Altynai Omurbekova, Vice Prime Minister of the Kyrgyz Republic and the EBRD Director for Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, Neil McKain.
The programme is supported by the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative and will offer a comprehensive package of financial and technical support for female business leaders in the Kyrgyz Republic designed to improve MSMEs’ competitiveness.
The Swiss Government through the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs is also supporting the programme by providing advisory services through the EBRD Small Business Impact Fund (other donors include: Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Sweden, Taipei China and the USA).
In the Kyrgyz Republic, small businesses are responsible for around 40 per cent of GDP but only one third of these companies are owned or led by women entrepreneurs.
FMFC is one of the largest microfinance institution in Kyrgyz Republic serving over 20,000 borrowers, through its network of 15 branches.
The EBRD has invested almost €790 million through 191 projects in the economy of the Kyrgyz Republic, with a majority of investments supporting private entrepreneurship.
https://www.akdn.org/project/fmfc-first ... -programme
Over 44% of FMFC’s clients are women. FMFC provide financial services to help them succeed in entrepreneurship, livestock and agriculture businesses.
AKDN
The First MicroFinance Company (FMFC) in the Kyrgyz Republic has become the first financial institution in the country to join the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)’s Women in Business programme in Central Asia. The programme supports women’s entrepreneurship in the Kyrgyz Republic as well as in Mongolia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
The EBRD is providing FMFC with a loan of US$1 million for on-lending to women-led micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and will promote women’s entrepreneurship and participation in business by assisting with access to finance, know-how, technical advice and policy dialogue.
FMFC CEO, Stefan Martiniak stated: “Different loan products are regularly developed and offered to women at the most favourable terms in our company. This project will also enable women to implement their projects and carry out their ideas. It will also provide an opportunity to create new working places, thus, promoting the country’s economic growth. We are confident that women present quite a big business potential and, therefore, we are looking forward to strong results from the project”.
The start of the Women in Business programme was announced on February 11th at an official ceremony attended by Altynai Omurbekova, Vice Prime Minister of the Kyrgyz Republic and the EBRD Director for Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, Neil McKain.
The programme is supported by the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative and will offer a comprehensive package of financial and technical support for female business leaders in the Kyrgyz Republic designed to improve MSMEs’ competitiveness.
The Swiss Government through the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs is also supporting the programme by providing advisory services through the EBRD Small Business Impact Fund (other donors include: Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Sweden, Taipei China and the USA).
In the Kyrgyz Republic, small businesses are responsible for around 40 per cent of GDP but only one third of these companies are owned or led by women entrepreneurs.
FMFC is one of the largest microfinance institution in Kyrgyz Republic serving over 20,000 borrowers, through its network of 15 branches.
The EBRD has invested almost €790 million through 191 projects in the economy of the Kyrgyz Republic, with a majority of investments supporting private entrepreneurship.
https://www.akdn.org/project/fmfc-first ... -programme
https://akipress.com/news:642061:Switze ... yn_region/
Kyrgyzstan|life|May 22, 2020 / 12:12 PM
Switzerland and Aga Khan Foundation provide humanitarian aid to farmers of Naryn region
AKIPRESS.COM - To respond to the socio-economic risks arising from the spread of the coronavirus in the region, fodder seeds and fertilizers as well as individual protection materials were provided to farmers and veterinarians in Naryn region of Kyrgyzstan, the Swiss Embassy said.
This humanitarian aid was transferred as part of the project “Emergency support to the livestock sector in Naryn and At-Bashy districts of Naryn region” supported by the Government of Switzerland and the Aga Khan Foundation in the Kyrgyz Republic.
The project in cooperation with local authorities provides support to more than 300 vulnerable farmer households of Naryn and At-Bashy districts of Naryn oblast. The farmers received 40 tons of barley seeds, 8 tons of sainfoin seeds and 10 tons of the ammophos fertilizer to grow fodder crops on 260 hectares and to support self-sustainability of farmers during the crisis period.
Since livestock is a key source of income in Naryn region, veterinarians of these areas have also been provided with personal protective equipment to allow safe working conditions. The equipment included 100 pieces of medical respiratory masks, 700 pairs of gloves and 100 pieces of protective goggles. This assistance was delivered through the Veterinary and Phytosanitary Safety Directorate of At-Bashy and Naryn districts.
The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected the socio-economic situation of farmers and the key response was to provide timely support during sowing season. These measures will allow people in vulnerable situation to continue working, safe vaccination of their livestock and support food security situation in the region.
During the delivery of humanitarian aid all sanitary precautionary measures were ensured.
Kyrgyzstan|life|May 22, 2020 / 12:12 PM
Switzerland and Aga Khan Foundation provide humanitarian aid to farmers of Naryn region
AKIPRESS.COM - To respond to the socio-economic risks arising from the spread of the coronavirus in the region, fodder seeds and fertilizers as well as individual protection materials were provided to farmers and veterinarians in Naryn region of Kyrgyzstan, the Swiss Embassy said.
This humanitarian aid was transferred as part of the project “Emergency support to the livestock sector in Naryn and At-Bashy districts of Naryn region” supported by the Government of Switzerland and the Aga Khan Foundation in the Kyrgyz Republic.
The project in cooperation with local authorities provides support to more than 300 vulnerable farmer households of Naryn and At-Bashy districts of Naryn oblast. The farmers received 40 tons of barley seeds, 8 tons of sainfoin seeds and 10 tons of the ammophos fertilizer to grow fodder crops on 260 hectares and to support self-sustainability of farmers during the crisis period.
Since livestock is a key source of income in Naryn region, veterinarians of these areas have also been provided with personal protective equipment to allow safe working conditions. The equipment included 100 pieces of medical respiratory masks, 700 pairs of gloves and 100 pieces of protective goggles. This assistance was delivered through the Veterinary and Phytosanitary Safety Directorate of At-Bashy and Naryn districts.
The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected the socio-economic situation of farmers and the key response was to provide timely support during sowing season. These measures will allow people in vulnerable situation to continue working, safe vaccination of their livestock and support food security situation in the region.
During the delivery of humanitarian aid all sanitary precautionary measures were ensured.
Reducing conflict through water management in Kyrgyzstan
The aim of this UKAID-funded project, implemented by Aga Khan Foundation, is to reduce conflicts related to the use and management of natural resources such as irrigation water and pastures in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan as well as in cross-border areas between both countries.
Gallery at:
https://www.akdn.org/gallery/reducing-c ... kyrgyzstan
The aim of this UKAID-funded project, implemented by Aga Khan Foundation, is to reduce conflicts related to the use and management of natural resources such as irrigation water and pastures in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan as well as in cross-border areas between both countries.
Gallery at:
https://www.akdn.org/gallery/reducing-c ... kyrgyzstan
Women’s employment critical to young children’s well-being
This International Women's Day, AKF's Global Lead for Early Childhood Development, Sweta Shah, explains how supporting women is crucial to child development and why AKF is piloting the ‘Happy Child’ Initiative in the Kyrgyz Republic
Women around the world are struggling with the additional pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic – from the demands of home-schooling, to feeding families on reduced incomes, or even an increase in gender-based violence in some of the worst cases.
Many of these women, especially in developing countries, were already struggling due to poverty in their countries and insufficient employment or income generating opportunities. The pandemic has only served to exacerbate their already challenging circumstances.
The problem of female unemployment has an even greater impact than simply on the woman herself. Research conducted by the World Bank, UNICEF and others, indicates the positive effect that an employed mother or one able to earn a living has on the overall well-being of her children and the entire family. Support for women’s economic opportunities is therefore inextricably linked to the positive life trajectories of young children.
On this International Women’s Day, we want to highlight the resilience and potential of women in the Kyrgyz Republic to support the well-being of their families through income generating employment, that also supports the communities’ youngest children.
More...
https://www.akf.org.uk/womens-employmen ... 25c8c5fc8d
This International Women's Day, AKF's Global Lead for Early Childhood Development, Sweta Shah, explains how supporting women is crucial to child development and why AKF is piloting the ‘Happy Child’ Initiative in the Kyrgyz Republic
Women around the world are struggling with the additional pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic – from the demands of home-schooling, to feeding families on reduced incomes, or even an increase in gender-based violence in some of the worst cases.
Many of these women, especially in developing countries, were already struggling due to poverty in their countries and insufficient employment or income generating opportunities. The pandemic has only served to exacerbate their already challenging circumstances.
The problem of female unemployment has an even greater impact than simply on the woman herself. Research conducted by the World Bank, UNICEF and others, indicates the positive effect that an employed mother or one able to earn a living has on the overall well-being of her children and the entire family. Support for women’s economic opportunities is therefore inextricably linked to the positive life trajectories of young children.
On this International Women’s Day, we want to highlight the resilience and potential of women in the Kyrgyz Republic to support the well-being of their families through income generating employment, that also supports the communities’ youngest children.
More...
https://www.akf.org.uk/womens-employmen ... 25c8c5fc8d
The Bai Alai Project - Kyrgyz Republic
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrqLP-xc1DA
With support from the Aga Khan Foundation, the Government of Switzerland and Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation, the Bai Alai project is helping farmers in the Kyrgyz Republic to artificially inseminate their cattle, improving the quality of their livestock. By doing this, the farmers can keep less cattle and protect their pastureland.
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrqLP-xc1DA
With support from the Aga Khan Foundation, the Government of Switzerland and Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation, the Bai Alai project is helping farmers in the Kyrgyz Republic to artificially inseminate their cattle, improving the quality of their livestock. By doing this, the farmers can keep less cattle and protect their pastureland.
$6.5 million initiative launched in Naryn to strengthen resilience to external shocks
AKIPRESS.COM - The Aga Khan Development Network and the Naryn authorities formally launched an innovative five year initiative to strengthen the resilience of Naryn town to external environmental and economic shocks, AKDN said.
The Naryn Urban Resilience Programme, with a total budget of US$ 6.5 million, financed by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the Aga Khan Foundation, aims to enhance the capacity of the Naryn Municipality to use advanced town planning techniques to inform infrastructure investments and community engagement efforts.
The inaugural meeting of the Steering Committee for NURP, co-chaired by the Governor of Naryn Oblast and the AKDN Diplomatic Representative, was convened on May 27. It concluded with Davlatsulton Dorgabekova, CEO, Aga Khan Foundation Kyrgyzstan signing partnership agreements with Sabyrkul Ashimbaev, Governor of Naryn Oblast and Kanbolot Tutuev, Naryn Mayor in the presence of Nicole Merkt, Program Manager, SECO.
Governor Sabyrkul Ashimbaev, noted that the Naryn authorities are delighted to “deepen the partnership with the AKDN to advance social and economic development in Naryn. We also highly appreciate the support from SECO. We confirm that all necessary measures will be undertaken to implement this programme to the highest standards and in a timely manner.”
The AKDN Diplomatic Representative in the Kyrgyz Republic, Dr Barkat Fazal underlined that this was “another major step in supporting government-led efforts to transform Naryn into an economic, touristic, educational, and cultural hub. Particularly encouraging is the commitment of Switzerland, the Naryn authorities, and the AKDN to ensure that the lessons learned from this effort are shared with broader development partners at the national level.”
https://akipress.com/news:671517:$6_5_m ... al_shocks/
Community-led education - Kyrgyztan
Community-led education: innovations replicated across the Kyrgyz Republic
AKF has partnered with the World Bank and the Ministry of Education and Science to promote community engagement to improve school processes and service delivery
The quality of education in Kyrgyz schools has always been an issue of national concern. Experiences from around the world suggest that the engagement of local communities in the management of schools brings transparency and accountability. This, in turn, leads to improvements in school management and brings about positive change to the quality of education.
Guided by these experiences and principles, between June 2017 and March 2022, the Aga Khan Foundation in the Kyrgyz Republic partnered with the World Bank and the Ministry of Education and Science (MoES) to bring about Engaging Communities for Better Schools (ECBS), an initiative aimed at promoting community engagement for the improved social accountability of schools. Innovations generated by communities through this initiative included the introduction of Boards of Trustees (BoT) at the school level.
Engaging Communities for Better Schools had been initiated to improve school processes and the quality of service delivery in 354 schools attended by more than 240,000 students. It had three key pillars (i) community engagement and capacity building; (ii) citizen feedback and joint action; (iii) micro-grants for priority investments in underprivileged schools.
The project introduced Boards of Trustees in schools to improve governance and accountability
The project far exceeded these original plans! Indeed, the innovations generated through the project were deemed so successful that the MoES made the decision to take them to the national level. Indeed, the MoES requested that 400 of its staff be trained on the approaches developed by the project, including around Boards of Trustees and social accountability tools. Its aim: to take these innovations to an additional 2,876 schools, kindergartens and TVET centers across the Kyrgyz Republic. The project also ended up supporting the MoES in introducing a legal requirement for educational institutions to have Boards of Trustees.
The results of the projects show that the percentage of parents and caregivers reporting improved accountability and responsiveness of teachers increased significantly compared to baseline values but that the percentage of students reporting improved accountability and responsiveness of teachers dropped compared to baseline values. This is explained by the momentous changes in teaching methods caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the move to online learning for a large part of 2019-2021, which presented many challenges for both teachers and students.
Parents and caregivers in the project schools also reported greater empowerment. Importantly, they had reported lower empowerment but than in the comparison schools at the baseline but, at the endline, their empowerment exceeded those in the comparison schools.
The students and their parents and caregivers who participated in the project are more engaged in their education
Even more importantly, the project contributed to an increase in the ratio of poor to non-poor households that are engaged in their children’s education – from 24 to 61 per every 100 non-poor households. However, the aggregate percentage indicating parents’ engagement in children’s education in the project schools decreased since the baseline (from 70% to 62% for poor households and from 73% to 60% for non-poor), due to the fact that poverty increased during the pandemic, resulting in a much bigger endline sample of poor households. Parents and caregivers were likely forced to spend more time searching for income-generating opportunities to meet the basic needs of their households. Morevoer, many families, especially in rural areas, lack devices (smartphones, laptops, tablets) to access online education, which may also have limited parents’ ability to engage in their children’s education.
The project has contributed to an increase in academic performance
Significant improvements in academic performance were also reported by parents and students of the 9th and 11th grades in the project schools. Based on the endline survey with parents and caregivers, 72% of project schools have had improvements in academic performance (compared to 24% in comparison schools).
The AKF team in Kyrgyzstan has introduced an innovative product for social accountability and governance driven by community members. Boards of Trustees are an effective tool that could be iterated upon in other countries where AKF works, especially for the purpose of optimising decision-making at the state level. AKF in Kyrgyzstan will continue to cooperate closely with the MoES in order to continue improving the work already started.
With thanks to the World Bank and the Ministry of Education and Science for their partnership in this programme.
https://www.akf.org.uk/community-led-ed ... 25c8c5fc8d
AKF has partnered with the World Bank and the Ministry of Education and Science to promote community engagement to improve school processes and service delivery
The quality of education in Kyrgyz schools has always been an issue of national concern. Experiences from around the world suggest that the engagement of local communities in the management of schools brings transparency and accountability. This, in turn, leads to improvements in school management and brings about positive change to the quality of education.
Guided by these experiences and principles, between June 2017 and March 2022, the Aga Khan Foundation in the Kyrgyz Republic partnered with the World Bank and the Ministry of Education and Science (MoES) to bring about Engaging Communities for Better Schools (ECBS), an initiative aimed at promoting community engagement for the improved social accountability of schools. Innovations generated by communities through this initiative included the introduction of Boards of Trustees (BoT) at the school level.
Engaging Communities for Better Schools had been initiated to improve school processes and the quality of service delivery in 354 schools attended by more than 240,000 students. It had three key pillars (i) community engagement and capacity building; (ii) citizen feedback and joint action; (iii) micro-grants for priority investments in underprivileged schools.
The project introduced Boards of Trustees in schools to improve governance and accountability
The project far exceeded these original plans! Indeed, the innovations generated through the project were deemed so successful that the MoES made the decision to take them to the national level. Indeed, the MoES requested that 400 of its staff be trained on the approaches developed by the project, including around Boards of Trustees and social accountability tools. Its aim: to take these innovations to an additional 2,876 schools, kindergartens and TVET centers across the Kyrgyz Republic. The project also ended up supporting the MoES in introducing a legal requirement for educational institutions to have Boards of Trustees.
The results of the projects show that the percentage of parents and caregivers reporting improved accountability and responsiveness of teachers increased significantly compared to baseline values but that the percentage of students reporting improved accountability and responsiveness of teachers dropped compared to baseline values. This is explained by the momentous changes in teaching methods caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the move to online learning for a large part of 2019-2021, which presented many challenges for both teachers and students.
Parents and caregivers in the project schools also reported greater empowerment. Importantly, they had reported lower empowerment but than in the comparison schools at the baseline but, at the endline, their empowerment exceeded those in the comparison schools.
The students and their parents and caregivers who participated in the project are more engaged in their education
Even more importantly, the project contributed to an increase in the ratio of poor to non-poor households that are engaged in their children’s education – from 24 to 61 per every 100 non-poor households. However, the aggregate percentage indicating parents’ engagement in children’s education in the project schools decreased since the baseline (from 70% to 62% for poor households and from 73% to 60% for non-poor), due to the fact that poverty increased during the pandemic, resulting in a much bigger endline sample of poor households. Parents and caregivers were likely forced to spend more time searching for income-generating opportunities to meet the basic needs of their households. Morevoer, many families, especially in rural areas, lack devices (smartphones, laptops, tablets) to access online education, which may also have limited parents’ ability to engage in their children’s education.
The project has contributed to an increase in academic performance
Significant improvements in academic performance were also reported by parents and students of the 9th and 11th grades in the project schools. Based on the endline survey with parents and caregivers, 72% of project schools have had improvements in academic performance (compared to 24% in comparison schools).
The AKF team in Kyrgyzstan has introduced an innovative product for social accountability and governance driven by community members. Boards of Trustees are an effective tool that could be iterated upon in other countries where AKF works, especially for the purpose of optimising decision-making at the state level. AKF in Kyrgyzstan will continue to cooperate closely with the MoES in order to continue improving the work already started.
With thanks to the World Bank and the Ministry of Education and Science for their partnership in this programme.
https://www.akf.org.uk/community-led-ed ... 25c8c5fc8d