Month: October 2022

Highlights

1 Compared to the last week, the prices of key food commodities such as rice, harricot bean and vegetable/cotton oils continued to decrease in the range of 1-3% due to import increases from foreign countries. Egg prices increased in 6 markets and decreased in 3 other markets.The price of beef increased by 1-2% in 5 markets.

2 Due to the seasonal factors, average onion prices in 7 markets increased by 3%-20%, and in 2 markets became lower by 4%-16%, and in the remaining markets, remained unchanged. Overall, the price of cabbage is 6% lower compared to last week and 8% lower compared to the last month.

3 Petrol prices continued to decline by 1%-5% in 7 markets. Overall, it is 6% lower than last month and 6% lower than same period last year on average.

4 Due to seasonal factors, prices for cucumbers and tomatoes increased due to a decrease in stocks on the market.

Source: World Food Programme

Kyrgyz authorities have frozen the bank account of RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz Service, known locally as Radio Azattyk, soon after they blocked its website for two months when the broadcaster refused to take down a video of one of its news programs that reported on clashes at the border with Tajikistan.

Representatives of Demirbank confirmed to Radio Azattyk on October 31 that they had received a notification from the State Committee on National Security (SCNS) to freeze the account. Radio Azattyk has yet to be given an official statement on the move.

LISTEN: Joining host Bruce Pannier to discuss the situation in Kyrgyzstan are Leila Nazgul Seiitbek, a lawyer and chairwoman of the NGO Freedom for Eurasia, and Saniia Toktogazieva, a constitutional lawyer and associate professor teaching international law at the American University of Central Asia in Bishkek.

The Kyrgyz government made the decision to block the Radio Azattyk website on October 26 after RFE/RL refused to take down the video, produced by Current Time, a Russian-language network run by RFE/RL in cooperation with VOA. Officials claimed the segment “predominantly” took the position of the Tajik side.

The decision was based on the Law on Protection from False Information, a piece of legislation that drew widespread criticism when adopted in August last year.

RFE/RL has rejected the accusation, with President and Chief Executive Officer Jamie Fly saying the company “takes [its] commitment to balanced reporting seriously” and that after a review of the content in question, “no violation of our standards” was found. RFE is appealing the decision.

In solidarity with RFE/RL, independent Kyrgyz media outlets on October 28 posted a black screen on their webpages for several hours with the caption “No news today. Media under pressure in Kyrgyzstan” and also refused to cover news stories about the government the whole day.

The Kyrgyz government’s decision has also been criticized by some Kyrgyz lawmakers and rights activists who have called for the government to repeal it.

Earlier this month threats were made against RFE/RL journalists during a demonstration in Bishkek at the office of RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz Service.

Most of the participants of the action covered their faces, avoided the camera, and refused to answer questions about their demands.

Ilimbek Israilov, the organizer of the demonstration, threatened to spray gasoline on RFE/RL reporters and use force against them.

Israilov is known for his involvement in the organization of numerous rallies to support the former deputy chief of the Customs Service, Raimbek Matraimov.

In 2019, an investigation by RFE/RL, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, and Kloop implicated Matraimov in a corruption scheme involving the transfer of hundreds of millions of dollars out of Kyrgyzstan.

Copyright (c) 2015. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.

GENEVA — The International Labor Organization warns multiple economic and political crises, largely triggered by the war in Ukraine and economic disruption in China, are threatening the recovery of the global labor market.

The ILO Monitor on the World of Work published Monday finds worsening labor market conditions are affecting both employment creation and the quality of jobs.

The report says multiple overlapping crises — including the highest inflation rates for a decade, tighter monetary policies, and increasing debt burdens — are sapping consumer and business confidence. It says signs of global labor recovery seen early this year have withered away.

The ILO estimates the number of hours worked globally in the third quarter of this year was 1.5 percent below pre-pandemic levels. This is equivalent to a loss of 40 million full-time jobs.

ILO Director-General Gilbert Houngbo says this downward trend is largely driven by the economic disruption in China and the fallout from the war in Ukraine.

“For China, what essentially we are saying is the disruption caused namely by quite very strict measures taken in reference to the management of the COVID-19 situation … also the global tightening of the fiscal monetary measures and the impact that could have on the domestic consumption,” Houngbo said.

In addition to the terrible humanitarian cost, the report notes the war in Ukraine is having a negative impact on the country’s economy and labor market. The ILO estimates 2.4 million Ukrainians have lost their jobs this year because of the conflict.

Houngbo says the impact of the war is being felt globally in rising food and fuel prices, increased food insecurity and poverty. He says Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is affecting and disrupting the labor markets and economies of neighboring countries.

“For example, in Tajikistan, the World Bank is projecting a 40 percent fall in migrant workers’ remittances. And in Kyrgyzstan, a 33 percent decline. This trend will easily shift into political and social destabilization,” Houngbo said.

Authors of the report express concern that most of the job growth that exists is concentrated in the informal sector. This, they say, is jeopardizing the positive trend that has been made in the last 15 years toward formalizing employment.

They say progress in narrowing the gender gap in employment also is at risk and the economic gap between developed and developing countries is widening.

Source: Voice of America

A round table with participation of senior representatives of Tajikistan’s relevant ministries and agencies, Tajik private sector, the U.S.-Tajikistan Business Council as well as representatives of United States’ General Electric, Coca-Cola, Valley Irrigation and VISA took place in Dushanbe on October 27, according to the State Committee on Investment and State-owned Property Management (GosKomInvest).

Source: Asia-Plus