Project Objectives

The overall objective of the project is to support the restructuring and diversification of Tajikistan’s agricultual sector. Efforts are focusing on:

• Providing seasonal finance for credit-worthy small, individual and family farms for their working capital needs
• Increase the competitiveness of Tajik agro-sector with comparative advantages and good potential for job creation and poverty reduction through access for rural SMEs to adequate financial products and business development services
• Enhance private sector's capacity linked to the agro-sector to advocate for reform and improve the business enabling environment by enhancing the strategic, legal and regulatory framework for Private Sector Development
• Developing necessary skills and capacity in the financial as well as agricultural sector

In order to achieve the above mentioned objectives, TAFF II will:

• Increase the large-scale agricultural micro-lending operations, including the constant adjustments of its methodology and financial products as required by the market
• Foster coordination among small farmers and rebuilding of value chains with innovative financial products like Institutional Group Lending and Value Chain Finance
• Promote the implementation of entrepreneur-friendly reforms and regulatory framework
• Continue the know-how transfer to local consultants and PI staff based on a Training of Trainers (ToT) approach

TAFF is implemented by a multinational and multidisciplinary team of professionals experienced in agricultural lending, value chain finance, policy advice as well as training and on-the-job coaching. Based on an in-depth knowledge of the Tajik financial and agriculture sector, the consultants work on designing and implementing tailor-made agricultural lending schemes for each of the PIs: Agroinvestbank, Amonatbank, Bank Eskhata, Tojiksodirotbonk, OXUS, HUMO and Partners.

Besides the lending scheme, experts work on the development of a more efficient and market-oriented agriculture and agro-industry through the promotion of pilot bottom-up initiatives fostering coordination among small and medium farmers (co-operatives) and top-down restructuring and rebuilding of linkages (value chain) between agro-businesses and farmers.

Also, the development of a more competitive private agro-sector will be enhanced through better market information, sector feasibility studies, technical knowledge and better capacity to advocate for reform vis-à-vis the Government of Tajikistan and the donor community.

At present the team works in different regions of Tajikistan (DRR - Dushanbe area, Khatlon and Sugd) with the key agricultural regions well covered.