DUSHANBE, October 6, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- Ten Tajik social-science researchers returned from a U.S. Embassy sponsored three-week professional development program in Washington DC, implemented by the Agency for International Development (USAID), according to the U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe.

The trip was part of USAID’s Community Connections exchange program which offers community-based, practical training in the United States for business and professional organization leaders from all regions of Tajikistan.

While in Washington, ten academics, policy analysts, and NGO leaders from across Tajikistan focused on practical methods of publishing research results.  In addition, they learned from their American counterparts how think tanks in the U.S. effectively advocate influencing public policy.  Tajik researchers visited and observed public, private and government think tanks and explored how public policy research can influence policy making bodies.  The participants learned how think tanks promote the interests of their communities, and investigated the impact of private funding on research outcomes.

The professional component of the program was enhanced by a rich cultural experience. Participants lived with American families and enjoyed visits to monuments, memorials and other points of interest in the Washington area.  Among the highlights was a tour of the News History Museum, and visits to the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage Performance, the Smithsonian Museums, and the Phillips Collection museum of modern art.  The delegates also joined together for a day of volunteer work at Food for All, a Washington-based charity, distributing meals to those in need.

The delegation returned to Tajikistan on September 30 and met in Dushanbe to discuss how they might connect social-science research and policy making in Tajikistan.  And, naturally, they have also been busy sharing their experiences and impressions of the United States with colleagues and friends.  Qahramon Baqoyev from Zerkalo Sociological Research Center commented that he had already made three good connections for future collaboration.  And Vafo Niyatbekov mentioned that his Center for Strategic Research and the Carnegie Endowment are planning a conference in Tajikistan on think tanks either in November 2010 or March 2011.

The USAID Community Connections Program is one of the many assistance projects implemented in Tajikistan by the United States Agency for International Development on behalf of the American people. Since 1992, the American people, through the U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe, has provided approximately $900 million in assistance programs that support Tajikistan’s democratic institutions, health care, education, and economic growth.