Tajikistan
Total population | 7 374 000* |
Registered HIV cases | 1 853** |
Estimated HIV cases | 10 000 |
Newly registered cases in 2009 | 431** |
* CIS Interstate Committee for Statistics, December 2008
** Tajik Republican AIDS Centre, Ministry of Health of Tajikistan, January 2010
*** ‘Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic', UNAIDS, August 2008
Country Background
The Republic of Tajikistan is a mountainous country in the south-east corner of Central Asia. It shares its borders with Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and China. Tajikistan has been inhabited by various peoples for more than six millennia, including the Macedonians and Arabs. Tajikistan was a part of the Mongol Empire; and in the sixteenth century became a part of the Bukhar Khanate. Russia took control at the end of the 19th century, conceded its power after the 1917 revolution, and regained control in 1924 when Tajikistan became an autonomous republic of the Soviet Union under Uzbekistan and then an independent Socialist Republic in 1929. Tajikistan gained independence in 1991 and established Dushanbe as its capital. The population is comprised mostly of Tajiks, Uzbeks, Russians and other groups. Tajik is the only official language, but a significant proportion of the population speaks Russian. Most of the population is Muslim.
Tajikistan is an agro-industrial country, but it also has huge potential in the hydro-electric sector. Nevertheless, it is one of the poorest countries in the world. Shortly after obtaining independence, Tajikistan fell into a bitter civil war lasting from 1992 to 1997. The destruction and loss to life from this long-running war led to a sharp decline in the economy. Nowadays, the Tajik economy, which relies mostly on cotton and aluminum, is extremely vulnerable and has been assisted largely by international aid.
HIV Situation
Since 1996, Tajikistan has seen a sharp rise in the number of injecting drug users, among whom the HIV epidemic is currently concentrated. Tajikistan is a major hub on the drug trafficking route from Afghanistan and has the world’s third highest number of annual opiate seizures. High rates of migration and a high prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) also act as catalysts for the growing epidemic. Furthermore, little knowledge about HIV transmission routes prevails amongst the population and there is a severe shortage of trained healthcare providers. Nonetheless, the government has shown a commitment to address these issues and has promoted educational programmes as well as the distribution of condoms and clean injecting equipment to vulnerable groups. As of January 1 2010, there were 1853 registered cases of HIV in Tajikistan. The country currently receives finance for HIV programmes through rounds 6 and 8 of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.