DUSHANBE, April 9, 2009, Asia-Plus  -- The American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) has held the first general meeting of its members at Hyatt Regency Dushanbe Hotel.

According to press release issued by AmCham Tajikistan, 23 members of the Chamber representing various local and foreign companies in different sectors of the country’s economy attended the meeting that discussed issues related to the association’s activities.

The meeting also elected nine members of the board of directors, chairman of the board of directors, as well as chairmen of committees and the audit commission.  The director of the representative office of Tethys Tajikistan Limited Nazir Sharipov was elected as chairman of the AmCham Tajikistan board of directors for two years.

We will recall that AmCham Tajikistan was registered with the Ministry of Justice of Tajikistan in November 2008.  The Eurasia Foundation of Central Asia (EFCA), with the support of U.S. Embassy in Tajikistan and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), played a major role in establishing the association, which is dedicated to contribute to the development of private enterprise in Tajikistan and act as an advocacy group on behalf of local and foreign businesses, pushing to improve Tajikistani legislation to guarantee the development of the free market.  In addition, it is expected to help Tajikistan attract new foreign investment.  Businesspeople see AmCham Tajikistan as a platform for discussions with the government on issues vital to the development of private enterprise in Tajikistan.