DUSHANBE, May 11, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- Member states of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) intend to provide assistance to the disaster-hit population of the Kulob zone in Khatlon province, according to Tajik presidential press service.

The CIS leaders made such a decision at a May 8 informal summit in Moscow.  Speaking at the summit, President Emomali Rahmon informed his CIS counterparts of effects of torrential rain and floods that hit the Kulob zone on May 7.

According to official data, floods and mudflows have killed more than 20 people in the Kulob region and some 20 others are reported missing.  According to the preliminary estimates, damage caused by floods and mudflows to the Kulob region has exceeded 100 million U.S. dollars.