Senior staff members of Tajikistan’s Ministry of Agriculture and its Statistics Agency are in Georgia now to meet with representatives of the National Statistics Office and the Ministry of Environment Protection and Agriculture in Georgia. They are on a five-day study tour, sharing experiences on agriculture reforms, learning about implementation of agricultural policies, and observing some of the best agriculture practices in action.

The tour is part of an FAO project to improve rural livelihoods and food security in Tajikistan through strengthened institutions.

While in Georgia, the Tajik delegation will discuss the development of agricultural policy, the usage of statistical data, and the management of development project donors. In the Georgian countryside, they’ll get advice from officials on data collection, sampling and surveys, and sharing information with farmers. Meetings were held at the FAO’s Representation office in Georgia where FAO consultants shared their experience regarding the market information systems, evaluation and assessment systems, value chain development and other ongoing and recently finalized programmes implemented by FAO in Georgia.

The delegation also visited National Statistics Office of Georgia and the National Wine Agency of Georgia were they learnt about a working case for the export promotion of national agricultural goods.

 “Georgia was selected as the destination of the study tour since the country has very recent experience in reforming and modernizing its agriculture, revising its government structures, and better defining the support to farmers – a pursuit that is still ongoing in Tajikistan,” said FAO policy officer Dmitry Zvyagintsev. “We are about halfway through with the project, and the feedback so far has been positive.”

The EUR 5 million project is financed by the European Union’s Rural Development Programme 1. Tajikistan stands to benefit from the multifaceted project on several levels. By the end of the four-year period, the Ministry of Agriculture looks to become more proficient and competent in strategic planning and analysis, programme formulation, and donor coordination.