Since Tajikistan’s independence in 1991 the number of rural girls leaving school after grade 9 has been increasing at an alarming rate. In order to improve rural girls’ secondary school attendance and retention, in 2006 Save the Children, local non-governmental organization (NGO) partners, and the Ministry of Education implemented a two-year UNICEF-funded Girls’ Education Project (GEP). This mixed-method study compares rural girls’ secondary school experiences and opportunities at six schools (three GEP schools and three non-GEP schools) in two districts located in regions with the lowest levels of female secondary school participation nationwide. Two research questions guided this study: 1) What factors serve as obstacles or enablers to girls’ secondary school experiences and opportunities in rural Tajikistan? and 2) How did the GEP attempt to overcome factors limiting rural girls’ secondary school experiences and opportunities and which aspects of the project were perceived to be most effective? The study’s theoretical framework contains concepts from two sets of theories: 1) social reproduction (schooling as a means of maintaining and reproducing the status quo) and 2) empowerment (schooling as a means of changing the status quo). Data collected reveals two groups’ perspectives: 1) adult participants (Ministry of Education officials, NGO staff, school administrators and teachers) and 2) rural female upper secondary school students. A multi-level data analysis process was used to compare findings within and across districts. Factors that serve as either an obstacle or an enabler of girls’ educational experiences and opportunities include those relating to the community/society, family, school, and self. Factors related to community/society include the dominant belief that a girl is “grown-up” by 15 and should no longer go to school which intersects with family poverty to create a major barrier to girls’ non-compulsory secondary schooling. Factors affecting girls’ schooling related to the family were the most significant determinant of a girl’s schooling. Of all the GEP activities, participants consistently considered the girls’ overnight camp to be the “best” activity. Findings show how enabling just a few girls to return to school significantly increases the likelihood of other girls being allowed to attend school in these rural communities.

Cette thèse explore les rôles rituels et sociaux des femmes au Tadjikistan et s’appuie sur seize mois d’enquête de terrain en zones urbaines et rurales. Deux fils conducteurs structurent l’analyse. Le premier porte sur la construction des féminités dans la société tadjike, tout particulièrement au regard du statut (acquis, perdu, reconquis) de femme mariée, extrêmement déterminant dans l’organisation des relations sociales. Le second interroge les rôles des femmes dans la reproduction familiale et sociale, tout particulièrement dans l’économie rituelle et matrimoniale. L’ensemble s’attache à montrer, au prisme des parcours matrimoniaux aujourd’hui extrêmement hachés des femmes, les négociations et adaptations de la société tadjike contemporaine aux bouleversements qu’elle a connus ces vingt dernières années : disparition de l’URSS, entrée dans l’économie de marché, la Guerre civile (1992-1997) et les migrations massives des hommes vers la Russie. Les enjeux ambivalents révélés par les mariages – étudiés comme performance, comme statut et comme relation – sont étudiés à deux niveaux : au niveau des femmes, pour qui le mariage constitue une ressource fondamentale autant qu’un carcan patriarcal ; et à celui des familles, pour qui le mariage est à la fois une obligation sociale et le lieu d’une contestation possible des hiérarchies en place. Située au croisement des études de genre, de parenté, d’économie rituelle et des recherches sur l’aire post-soviétique, cette thèse propose de saisir comment les transformations socioéconomiques récentes ont affecté les représentations et les relations de genre d’une part, et celles au sein de la famille, d’autre part. / This dissertation explores social and ritual roles of women in Tajikistan, based on a sixteen-month fieldwork conducted in both urban and rural areas. Two main threads structure the analysis. The first one addresses the construction of femininities in Tajik society, especially regarding their status (acquired, lost and conquered again) of “married woman” – which is extremely decisive for them to organize their social life. The second questions women’s roles in family and social reproduction, especially regarding ritual and matrimonial economy. Overall, this dissertation aims at showing that analyzing uneven and irregular women’s matrimonial itineraries reveals how negotiations and adaptations of Tajik society to ongoing transformations have been proceeding – following the upheavals this society has been going through: the breakdown of the USSR, the integration to market economy, the Civil war (1992-1997) and the wide migratory fluxes of men going to Russia. The ambiguous stakes contained in marriage – understood as a performance, a status and a relation – are analyzed at two levels: at the level of women, for whom marriage remains a crucial resource as much as a patriarchal constrain; and at the level of families, for whom marriage is both a social necessity and the opportunity to challenge former hierarchies. Located at the crossroad of gender studies, kinship, ritual economy and post-Soviet studies, this dissertation aims at understanding how recent socioeconomic transformations affect gender representations and relations, on the one hand, and those of family, on the other.

Purpose of the study: based on the analysis of the labor market of the Republic of Tajikistan, to develop recommendations for reducing the unemployment rate. Theoretical aspects of the concept of"" unemployment"", methodological approaches to determining its level and existing methods of combating unemployment are studied. The economy and labor market of the Republic of Tajikistan are analyzed. Recommendations have been developed to reduce the unemployment rate in the Republic of Tajikistan. / Исследованы теоретические аспекты понятия «безработицы», методические подходы к определению ее уровня и существующие методы борьбы с безработицей. Проанализирована экономика и рынок труда Республики Таджикистан. Разработаны рекомендации по снижению уровня безработицы в Республике Таджикистан.

Master of Arts / Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work / Nadezda Shapkina / With the collapse of the socialist model in the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1991 which was followed by Civil War (1992-1997), Tajikistan has undergone profound social, economic, and political transformation. Persistent impoverishment, political and economic instability, and discrimination of ethnic minorities have resulted in out-migration of Tajik population to Russia. In this study, labor migration (survival driven, seasonal, and chain) is discussed. Even though Tajik migrants face challenges such as segregation, xenophobia, sexism, and intolerance working abroad, they continue to migrate to Russia in order to seek a better quality of life. This is closely linked to migration policy and regulations that have been implemented by the governments of these countries which allow free movement across the borders. Although these migration policies promote legal migration, they create favorable conditions for inequality (such as structural, social, and global) as well as illegal migratory flows. However, little scholarly work has been focused on how migration policy contributes to structural inequality and leads to illegal migration in the former Soviet Republics. In my study, I seek to add to the limited existing literature about these phenomena. I examine the social context of Tajik labor migration, legal framework, migration policy and regulations, and its implications. Specifically, I analyze the case of Tajikistan and Russia’s migration policies and regulations as they are proposed and implemented by governmental agencies in collaboration and consultation with civil society organizations (local and international) including the Tajik diasporas.

Although there is little official data, early girls’ marriage before the age of 18 appears to have increased in Tajikistan over recent years, due to the limited socio-economic opportunities. This study aimed to explore the main causes behind the fall in the age of marriage for girls. As Tajikistan is based on patriarchal values, where family is the core of decision-making, the study looks into the family dynamics and interrelationships to analyse the driving forces behind the decision to arrange marriage for the girls at an earlier age. Using triangulated methods of qualitative data collection, such as interviews, focus group discussions and case studies, the study was conducted in urban, semi rural/semi urban and rural areas of Tajikistan. The findings confirm that early marriage exists in Tajikistan. Although marriage has always been important for Tajiks, recently early age of marriage has been more prioritized. The young girls today leave school when they reach puberty, limit their socialization with their friends outside of the house and rigorously learn skills that qualify them as a ‘desirable’ kelin [bride] to increase their chances of getting a marriage proposal within what is a short marriage window. At the same time, the study argues that the family decision to pursue an early age of marriage for daughters is not because of the low status of the women as it has been suggested in some earlier research. Instead, the study argues that marriage is a strategy to provide girls with what is often the only opportunity of an economically and socially secure future in the country under the current socio-economic and political context. Relations within the families are more complicated than dominant-subordinate as previously portrayed but are based on respect, love and responsibility towards each other. This ‘connectivity’ assists in shaping the girls as potent Tajik women ready for their future roles of mothers and wives. The young girls, as this study suggests, are usually not completely powerless either, as they exercise the limited agency provided by the patriarchal system and actively engage in negotiating their interests. Thus, the study aimed to (1) draw attention to the issue of early marriage among girls in Tajikistan and (2) to contribute to the scholarly discussion on early marriage and on gender and family dynamics in Tajikistan. Based on the findings, it is recommended that more research needs to be conducted to discuss the phenomenon of early girls’ marriage in Tajikistan. Further, legal, political and social changes are necessary to provide a safety net for women married at an early age but divorced or abandoned later. Although bringing changes to the marriage values might be a challenging task, it is hoped that this research and others similar to this one will demonstrate the importance of the issue and will result in appropriate attention and an effective policy response.

Abstract not available.

The past decade has seen a transformation in the relationships among states in the Xinjiang-Central Asian region. The thesis is an analysis of this relationship, a relationship primarily built on economic and strategic interdependency. Within the thesis, the basis of the relationship is established; the extent of the relationship is ascertained, and the impact of this relationship is evaluated. The thesis differs from previous studies of this area in several ways. The most significant is that a group of Central Asian states and an autonomous region of China have formed into a unit of economic interdependency, which needs to be assessed as a group rather than as individual entities. Much of previous and recent scholarship tends to focus on issues within a particular country or part of a country, such as the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. However, it is my contention that this is not an adequate representation of what is occurring in the region today. The focus needs to be widened to take into account the dynamics of this interdependent relationship which consists of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and several of the former Soviet Union states, primarily Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. All of these states with the exception of Uzbekistan are contiguous with Xinjiang. This relationship of interdependency has reached a level sufficient to influence decisions taken by governments within the region, and a prime factor of this has been the suppression of secessionist movements, principally Uygur separatist movements, among the Uygur diaspora residing in neighbouring states. Another highly relevant issue the thesis evaluates is sources of tension within the Xinjiang-Central Asian region and the impact these tensions have on the interdependency relationship. An assessment is made as to whether because of this interdependency, the sources of tension may not be adequately addressed by the respective governments to the satisfaction of the general populace. This is seen as due to the individual governments' hesitation to upset China by addressing such matters as border demarcation and transboundary water diversion between China and neighbouring states. An outcome of this scenario may be that many of the tensions are left to simmer and therefore bode ill for future stability in the region. Fundamentally, the thesis argues that the matters raised in the previous paragraphs need to be assessed on the basis of an ongoing relationship of interdependency encompassing Xinjiang and several neighbouring Central Asian states. The overlapping of multiple sources of commonality such as geography, ethnicity, culture, religion, economics and strategic matters, dictates that we should not assess issues on a country-by-country basis. Rather, it is necessary to consider the region as a whole, taking into account the prevailing conditions emanating from this relationship of economic and strategic interdependency.

<p>Central Asia is a region strategically located on the crossroads of the two continents. The region is represented by five states (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) with different level of economic development and with the population amounting to over 60 million people. The region is rich in energy resources, represented by oil, gas, coal and hydropower resources.</p><p>The thesis analyses, assesses and scrutinises one of the topical issues of the contemporary international relations - cooperation between the European Union and Central Asian states before and after adoption in June 2007 of the ‘European Union and Central Asia: Strategy for a New Partnership’, an important political document in the history of relations between the two parties.</p><p>The new stage of cooperation is analysed more comprehensively accentuating priorities set in the Strategy. Analysis of the current state of affairs is conducted concerning some important issues of the Strategy related to regional cooperation between Central Asian states, such as integrated water management and development of hydro-energy system, issues of diversification of hydrocarbons supply routes from the region to Europe and provision of energy security, etc.</p><p>Issues of cooperation between the European Union and Tajikistan are analysed as a case study. State of affairs between some of the European Union member-states and Central Asian countries is characterised.</p><p>The thesis also scrutinises other regional/international actors engaged in cooperation with Central Asia (such as China, Russia, the US, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, etc.) and their potential for interaction with the European Union for more effective joint solution of the problems existing in the region is assessed.</p><p>In the conclusion, development of cooperation between the European Union and Central Asian states is scrutinised, the problems and their possible solutions in this regard are analysed, and the recommendations for increasing effectiveness of cooperation between the two parties are presented.</p><p>The European Union’s foreign policy in Central Asia is interpreted from perspective of the theories of international relations namely neorealism, neoliberalism and constructivism in the end of every chapter.</p>

This study aims to analyzing the role of Islam, regionalism, and external factors (the involvement of the Russian Federation, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Iran) in the Tajik Civil War (1992-97). It analyzes all these three factors one by one. In the thesis, it is argued that all of the three factors played an active and equal role in the emergence of the war and that in the case of the absence of any of these factors, the Tajik Civil War would not erupt. As such, none of the factors is considered to be the only player on its own and none of the factors is considered to be the basic result of other two factors.

The aim of this study is to examine the formation and consolidation of the Pamiri people in Tajikistan. The research focuses on two topics. The first is to compare the primordialist and constructionist schools over the question of the features individuating ethnic groups. The formation of Pamiri ethnic identity during the Soviet rule was selected as a case study of this thesis. The second topic of this study is to examine the formation of Pamiri ethnic identity and the factors that contributed for its consolidation during the Soviet period. While the first topic is gathered around contemporary issues about ethnicity, the second one is based on the Soviet period with a focus on the policies about the nationality question.