Poverty in Tajikistan continues to fall: World Bank report

Poverty continued to decline in Tajikistan in 2014, but the rate of decline is expected to moderate in 2015-2016, according to a World Bank report released here Tuesday.

Using the international poverty line of 2.5 U.S. dollars a day at purchasing power parity as a yardstick, the report said the poverty rate in Tajikistan declined to an estimated 33.8 percent in 2014.

The poverty rate in the country fell to 34.5 percent in 2013-2014, while extreme poverty fell to 18.5 percent.

The report said an important characteristic of poverty in Tajikistan is that it is highly seasonal, with the poverty rate likely to fluctuate substantially each quarter, which makes it difficult to identify the poor.

According to the Household Budget Survey, in a given four-quarter period about 50 percent of households are never poor and about 10 percent are chronically poor, while the remaining 40 percent move back and forth across the poverty line.

The most important reason for the seasonal fluctuation of poverty in Tajikistan is the seasons, which affect the primary source of income for many households in rural areas. At harvest time, there is often more work available and more income for those who produce and sell agricultural goods. In other seasons, their incomes may be lower.

The availability of jobs outside the agricultural sector also varies seasonally, as do remittances from labor migrants. More remittances flow in during summer and autumn. Endi