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Tajikistan

Summer Woes Linger into Tajikistan Winter

Written by Stephanie Kriner, Staff Writer, DisasterRelief.org, with news reports
Winters in the mountainous former Soviet republic of Tajikistan are notoriously harsh - due especially to economic difficulties that followed the breakup of the Soviet Union. Shortages of gas, coal and electricity leave people in remote and rugged areas without a reliable source of heat - forcing them to chop trees for fuel. There is rarely enough food, and farmers routinely sell their livestock - sacrificing them in order to buy enough wheat to make bread.

In a strikingly different way, summers can be just as harsh. Temperatures soar to 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit), and farmers struggle to keep their crops alive under the blazing sun. Adding to the misery, the last three summers have been plagued by a devastating drought.

Last summer ranked as one of the worst in memory. Six months without rain placed Tajikistan in its most severe drought in 70 years. Thousands of hectares of wheat were scorched by the sun, leaving people unable to make bread - the most substantial parts of their diets. They relied on fruits that survived the harsh conditions - melons and grapes, which were actually in abundance. But now the fruits have run out, and winter is setting in.

The drought has left more than 1 million Tajiks on the verge of starvation, say humanitarian organizations that are struggling to raise enough funds to prevent people from going hungry. But they say that all the needs may not be met. "We are relying on the support of donor nations. Tajikistan's grain harvest totaled 236,000 tons this year but the country needs over a million tons to feed the population," Bouchan Hadj-Chikh, a U.N. World Food Program (WFP) representative told Agence France-Presse.

Two weeks ago, the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies warned that the country could wait only a matter of weeks before the situation becomes desperate. "People are likely to die in the next few months," the Federation's Dennis McClean said. A Red Cross food distribution to assist 250,000 drought victims cannot start until January because the organization has only 10 percent of the funds it needs.

The drought has been a huge setback for a population that suffered the effects of the collapse of the Soviet Union, with the dramatic transition from state-controlled and -subsidized agriculture to a privatized system centered on the small farmer.

Particularly hard-hit are these farmers, who live off crops grown on their small rain-fed plots of land. Also affected are large parts of the urban population, unemployed, underpaid or not paid at all for months as a result of the country's failing economy, according to a Federation report.

"People's coping mechanisms are very limited, and they will not get through the harsh winter without external assistance," said Dr. Inomzoda, president of the Red Crescent society in Tajikistan. "A large part of the Tajik population is under the real threat of starvation. The priority is for farmers, who were growing wheat on non-irrigated land, and multi-children families without a breadwinner. These people need urgent assistance."

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American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. To help the victims of disaster, you may make a secure online credit card donation or call 1-800-HELP NOW (1-800-435-7669) or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Or you may send your donation to your local Red Cross or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013.

The American Red Cross is dedicated to helping make families and communities safer at home and around the world. The Red Cross is a volunteer-led humanitarian organization that annually provides almost half the nation's blood supply, trains nearly 12 million people in vital life-saving skills, mobilizes relief to victims in more than 60,000 disasters nationwide, provides direct health services to 2.5 million people, assists international disaster and conflict victims in more than 20 countries, and transmits more than 1.4 million emergency messages to members of the Armed Forces and their families. If you would like information on Red Cross services and programs please contact your local Red Cross.

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DisasterRelief
DisasterRelief.org is a unique partnership between the American Red Cross, IBM and CNN dedicated to providing information about disasters and their relief operations worldwide. The three-year-old website is a leading disaster news source and also serves as a conduit for those wishing to donate to disaster relief operations around the globe through the international Red Cross movement. American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. To help the victims of disaster, you may make a secure online credit card donation or call 1-800-HELP NOW (1-800-435-7669) or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Or you may send your donation to your local Red Cross or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013. The American Red Cross is dedicated to helping make families and communities safer at home and around the world. The Red Cross is a volunteer-led humanitarian organization that annually provides almost half the nation's blood supply, trains nearly 12 million people in vital life-saving skills, mobilizes relief to victims in more than 60,000 disasters nationwide, provides direct health services to 2.5 million people, assists international disaster and conflict victims in more than 20 countries, and transmits more than 1.4 million emergency messages to members of the Armed Forces and their families. If you would like information on Red Cross services and programs please contact your local Red Cross. © Copyright, The American National Red Cross. All Rights Reserved.