Challenges to Women’s Economic Empowerment in Rural Tajikistan: A Study from Road Projects

This brief analyzes ways to economically empower women in rural Tajikistan and highlights how better integrating measures into the development of critical transport infrastructure projects can help narrow the substantial gender gap. It assesses why Tajik women’s educational attainment is lower, shows how they are under-represented in the job market, and explains the challenges posed by deep-rooted intrafamilial hierarchies. Drawing on survey results, it shows how women benefitted from ADB transport projects that included empowerment activities and explains why understanding cultural norms and providing help to start businesses can boost women’s socioeconomic capacity.

Challenges to Women's Economic Empowerment in Rural Tajikistan: A Study from Road Projects KEY POINTS • Women's access to transport development benefits is often limited in rural Tajikistan because of deeply rooted intrafamilial hierarchies and limited opportunities for women's participation in activities outside their homes.
• Recent transport projects in Tajikistan include activities for promoting women's exposure outside their homes and enhancing their socioeconomic capacity.However, the project design often fails to capture and address the interlinked structural constraints hindering women's empowerment.
• It is essential to include women's empowerment activities in transport projects to enhance their socioeconomic capacity.
To enhance such effects sustainably, extra efforts are needed at the project design stage to improve benefits for women.The project design should consider societal and intrafamilial contexts in addition to the project contents.
Tajikistan was ranked 125th among 157 countries in the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Index in 2021. 5his relatively low rank is primarily attributable to the low female participation in the economic and political spheres, as evidenced by the following figures: women's labor participation rate is 30.7% against that of men (52.3%); women occupy only 14.8% of legislators, and senior or managerial positions against that of men (85.2%); and 41.1% of women are engaged in professional and technical jobs, whereas 58.9% of men work in such jobs.The gender gap in educational attainment could explain this-for example, in 2017, 16.9% of men above 25 years of age completed a bachelor's degree or equivalent higher educational program, whereas only 6.8% of women above 25 years of age did the same. 6These illustrate women's limited participation in job markets.Thus, the country's gender issues are highly structural and contextual.
International financial institutions assist developing countries in strengthening transport infrastructure and networks, aiming to promote economic development and improve people's livelihoods.However, empirical evidence shows that women often benefit less from transport infrastructure development than men.This is attributable to expectations and constraints on women's behaviors and activities, which are deeply rooted in their societies.Women tend to engage in a range of household duties inside and outside their houses, resulting in the complication of their travel needs and patterns;7 social and cultural norms constrain their activities outside their homes or community;8 and available transport modes are limited because of the low ownership of driving licenses and limited economic capacities to purchase personal travel modes, while the use of public transport infrastructure and service is also ridden with safety concerns.9Economic empowerment activities targeting women are often included in transport projects to address these challenges and enhance the projects' benefits for women.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has incorporated activities for empowering women in road projects in Tajikistan since 2010.
To assess the effects of such activities, ADB conducted post-project surveys for three completed projects in 2022.The surveys confirmed the positive effects of these activities on beneficiaries' livelihoods.
On the other hand, the surveys also identified issues rooted in the projects' areas and potential beneficiaries' families, which affected women's participation in the activities and hindered the realization of expected benefits.These constraints were structural and interlinked, as presented in the following figure:  In the GAP of project 2, the following were included: (i) improving road safety for male and female travelers and safe access to schools for girls, (ii) developing a gender-sensitive border-crossing point, (iii) enhancing benefits for women from improved highways, (iv) providing an enabling environment for women to start a business, and (v) improving public transportation for women travelers. 15This study focuses mainly on components (iii) and (iv During FGDs in Gissor and Tursunzoda, it was reported that the livestock-raising business was challenging from the perspective of operational sustainability because the business could not be sustained if livestock died or livestock breeding did not go well.
Financial resources for starting new businesses.Under project 1, ADB provided grants to women selected based on their proposals to start new businesses.Around 240 proposals were submitted, and a selection committee-chaired by the CWFA and composed of representatives from relevant government agencies and project stakeholders-evaluated these proposals.As a result, 137 women in the project area received grants from the project for starting new businesses, 17 such as sewing, fast-food kiosks, bakeries, greenhouses, and livestock raising. 18FGD participants who had received grant funds confirmed that such an opportunity resulted in the attainment of economic independence and income augmentation, and sustained the livelihoods of their family members.It was further learned that some FGD participants provided employment opportunities for other women in their village.Moreover, the women who did well with their businesses also reported increased status among their families.Meanwhile, there was no grant provision under projects 2 and 3.After the training under the projects, some training participants were willing to start businesses and developed business plans to improve their livelihoods.They had to apply for private bank loans or presidential grants, 19 but not all participants showed interest in loan or grant applications.
Barriers to women's participation in economic empowerment training in the project areas.Deeply rooted intrafamilial hierarchies posed challenges to women's participation in economic empowerment training.Women in the project areas were burdened with numerous household responsibilities and were expected to prioritize those tasks over engaging in additional activities.This has been more critically observed in younger generations who faced supervision from male family members and, if married, their mother-in-law.These family members were not supportive

RECOMMENDATIONS
Based on the findings, the recommendations for enhancing the effectiveness of women's economic empowerment components in future projects are as follows: Comprehend intrafamilial hierarchy.Understanding and addressing the influence of intrafamilial hierarchies on women's participation is crucial.An intrafamilial hierarchy was found to be a determinant of women's participation in the project areas.
A possible measure is to make target groups more specific and tailor training programs to the target groups' interests and availability to promote regular participation and comprehensive learning.Advance consultation with the target groups' family members is also essential.The availability of safe travel modes was an important factor of consideration for the male family members.
It is thus suggested to include assistance in promoting transport services and implementing economic empowerment training for women under road projects.
Address possible limited educational attainment.A critical issue found through FGDs was that young women in the project areas had limited access to educational opportunities and exposure to new knowledge.This could be explained by resource allocation decisions among family members.In Tajikistan, compulsory education is free and mandatory until the ninth grade.However, parents are expected to pay for school uniforms, educational materials, commutes to and from school, and other expenses required for regular school operations.When resources for children's education are limited, parents often prioritize their son's education over that of their daughters because girls and young women are expected to help take care of household duties and, eventually, leave their houses upon marriage.Sons are expected to become breadwinners for their parents and family and, thus, must complete their education to position themselves better in formal job markets. 20These are the outcome of the patriarchal nature of society, which is often more widely predominant in rural areas.Hence, training programs for women should be designed with consideration of the target groups' educational backgrounds and interests, ensuring their continuous engagement.Women's limited exposure to educational or training programs would affect their children's educational attainment, as empirically evidenced. 21Breaking the cycle of limited educational opportunities for rural women is crucial for the long-term economic development in the areas.
Align training programs with market needs.To improve local women's economic capacity effectively, it is essential to assess the needs of current markets and identify feasible approaches for helping women in rural areas acquire knowledge and skills to respond to such market needs.As the local government agency for project 2 mentioned, women in rural areas tend to sell the same products that are available at their place, resulting in high competition among themselves and low product prices.Another observation during the FGDs was that existing structural and cultural customs strongly influence the roles of men and women in society and impact the enjoyment of rights; most women, including educated women, have limited awareness of their rights as citizens. 22Providing training that equips women with relevant skills and knowledge for business would help women design their businesses more efficiently and profitably.It is suggested to include training on legal rights to increase women's awareness and empower them to navigate their rights and available support systems.
Conduct risk assessment and provide mitigation measures.It was observed that some grant recipients were fragile to unexpected situations after project 1 was completed, particularly external shocks such as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.Simultaneously, grant recipients' family members did not support their businesses for fear of such risks.In fact, some recipients had to abandon their businesses eventually.Thus, it is suggested to conduct business risk assessments and design risk management programs for entrepreneurs.
Establish business consultation services.Women's access to financial resources for new income-generation activities was limited to the project areas.In project 1, a grant was provided to selected women using secured ADB-financed project grants.This approach could be effective in the short term but not necessarily in the long term.Meanwhile, FGD participants for projects 2 and 3 informed that some had to give up their new businesses because of the unavailability of seed funds.It is, therefore, recommended to establish business support services to assist women who want to start and organize businesses after the training completion for their business sustainability.These services may include networking with existing entrepreneurs, coaching support, and advice on available financial support.
Involve relevant authorities.NGOs involved in the implementation of the projects' GAPs appreciated the engagement of the CWFA and UWFAs.During implementation, the UWFAs reached out to women in the project areas to encourage their participation in the training while having discussed with family members who were not supportive of their female family members' activities outside.
These agencies are expected to be integral to enhancing women's engagement in economic empowerment activities in rural Tajikistan.
Conduct before-and after-training surveys.Various implications were obtained for designing and implementing women's economic empowerment activities under future transport projects through post-implementation surveys for the three projects, which were completed at various timings.It is suggested to conduct baseline and post-training surveys during implementation (i) to identify the training effects that training participants and their family members perceived and (ii) to capture lessons from the implementation experience in a timely manner.
The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of ADB or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent.ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included here and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use.

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Figure: Constraints Analysis 20 P. Yakubova.2020.The Effects of Traditional Gender Norms on the Fate of Girls' Education in Tajikistan.Doctoral dissertation.North Dakota State University.21 R. Tharmmapornphilas.2013.Impact of Household Factors on Youth's School Decisions in Thailand.Economics of Education Review.37 (C).pp.258-272. 22S. F. Hayat.2019.Gender, Enterprise and Markets in Tajikistan: Building Resilience, Empowering Lives.Dushanbe/Oxford: Oxfam International.
Report and Recommendation of the President to the Board of Directors: Proposed Grant to the Republic of Tajikistan for the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Corridors 3 and 5 Enhancement Project.Manila; and ADB.2021.Project Completion Report for the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Corridors 3 and 5 Enhancement Project.Manila.Manila Activities in project 3 included training in business development, financial literacy, and awareness of HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted disease (STD).The training was designed based on the outcomes of a needs assessment with potential participants, such as women in the project area, and items specified in the project's GAP, such as awareness of HIV/AIDS/STDs, were also considered.The individual interviews covered interviewees' responsibilities, institutional arrangements, engagement of women in project areas' community, interviewees' post-project socioeconomic conditions, challenges observed during implementation, and lessons and recommendations for future road projects.The FGDs with the training participants focused on socioeconomic conditions of their locality, project road conditions and local populations' patterns of using the roads, motivation to participate in the training, family members' reactions to their participation in the training, challenges they faced during implementation, participants' post-project situations, and recommendations for future projects of similar nature.Another set of questions was prepared for FGDs with training participants' family members to gather their perspectives on their female family members' participation in the training and changes in their locality after the road improvement under the case projects.The number of participants is summarized in the following table (see next page): ).Approximately 200 women attended civil rights training, and about 100 women were trained in business development, financial literacy, business plan preparation, and prevention of HIV and AIDS.10Thissection was developed based on ADB.2010.Report and Recommendation of the President to the Board of Directors: Proposed Grant to the Republic of Tajikistan for the CAREC Corridor 3 (Dushanbe-Uzbekistan Border) Improvement Project.Manila; and ADB.2017.Project Completion Report for the CAREC Corridor 3 (Dushanbe-Uzbekistan Border) Improvement Project.Manila.11Thissection was developed based on ADB.2012.Report and Recommendation of the President to the Board of Directors: Proposed Grant and Administration of Loan to the Republic of Tajikistan for the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Corridor 6 (Ayni-Uzbekistan Border Road) Improvement.Manila; and ADB.2018.Project Completion Report for the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Corridor 6 (Ayni-Uzbekistan Border Road) Improvement Project.Manila.12Thissection was developed based on ADB.2013.13TheCWFA is responsible for implementing national policies on protecting women's interests and rights in Tajikistan and promoting gender equality, as well as monitoring Tajikistan's compliance with international standards.14Atotal of 202 women participated in business development training, while 100 women attended vocational skills training.ADB.2017.Project Completion Report for the CAREC Corridor 3 (Dushanbe-Uzbekistan Border) Improvement Project.Manila.15Theproject's GAP was included in ADB.2012.Report and Recommendation of the President to the Board of Directors: Proposed Grant and Administration of Loan to the Republic of Tajikistan for the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Corridor 6 (Ayni-Uzbekistan Border Road) Improvement.Manila.16Therewere755 women who attended trainings on human and property rights, whereas 454 participated in business-related training.These numbers include participants in events held along the Sayron-Karamyk section.ADB.2021.Project Completion Report for the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Corridors 3 and 5 Enhancement Project.As per the project completion report, the grant recipients started a variety of businesses such as entrepreneurial activities; livestock and poultry farming; processing fruits and vegetables; operating shops, kiosks, and canteens; beekeeping; greenhouse businesses; party rental services; and pillow or bed décor business.ADB.2017.Project Completion Report for the CAREC Corridor 3 (Dushanbe-Uzbekistan Border) Improvement Project.Manila.18

Table :
Participants in the Impact Assessment Survey CAREC = Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation, FGD = focus group discussion.aOne interviewee was involved in implementing projects 1 and 2. b Only the Vose-Khovaling section was studied for this paper.Source: Authors.oftheir female family members' participation in the training related to new economic activities because of concerns about associated risks, such as debts, and the belief that household duties of female family members should always take precedence.Nongovernment organizations (NGOs) involved in the implementation and local government representatives, such as those from the Units for Women and Family Affairs (UWFAs), tried to address these barriers by visiting family members who opposed their female family members' participation in the training and explaining the training's anticipated benefits to their livelihoods.
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