Tag Archives: Tajikistan

Clinton on Bahrain / Hip-Hop in Tajikistan / Civil Society and Democracy

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Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton urges restraint in Bahrain. Egyptian Americans are hopeful about the future of their homeland. This March, the Kennedy Center will host Maximum India. The United States and China are growing relations through a new garden. American hip-hop dancers bring the beat to Tajikistan. And finally, what is civil society? This photo gallery has some answers.

U.S. Urges Restraint in Bahrain
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Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton telephoned Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmad al-Khalifa to express U.S. concerns over violence by Bahraini security forces against anti-government protesters. Clinton says she had telephoned the foreign minister earlier in the day and “emphasized how important it was” that the Friday prayers and the funerals of the victims that will be held February 18 “not be marred by violence.”

Egyptians Americans are Hopeful
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Egyptian Americans, proud of the victory of pro-democracy protesters in Egypt, are looking to the future of their homeland with a mix of optimism, hope and a dash of realism.

Maximum India
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This March, the Kennedy Center in Washington will host the Maximum India festival, which will include performances, events and exhibitions by 500 artists in cooperation with the Indian Council for Cultural Resources. Maximum India marks the culmination of the Kennedy Center’s five-year exploration of the arts and cultures of the peoples along the legendary Silk Road, including Japan, China and the Middle East.

U.S., China Grow as Partners
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The United States and China have committed to construction of a classical Chinese garden at the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington. “Today’s signing ceremony illustrates the commitment our two countries have to horticulture, science and the arts,” says Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack during a ceremony with China’s ambassador to the United States, Zhang Yesui.

Hip-Hop in Tajikistan 
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In 2010, the U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe and the private cultural-exchange group American Voices arranged a series of dance workshops in Tajikistan led by two U.S. hip-hop dancers. The workshops highlighted the upbeat hip-hop sound that has had unexpectedly universal appeal worldwide, with a fast-growing fan base in Tajikistan.

Lech WalesaPhoto Gallery: Civil Society
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Civil society “is the conscience of our communities,” President Obama has said. Human progress, he said, has been shaped by individuals who can freely join forces and by nongovernmental organizations. But what is civil society, exactly? Why is it important? And what does it need to flourish? Explore this photo gallery about civil society around the world. In Poland, Lech Walesa, right, a shipyard electrician, was able to establish Solidarity, the Soviet bloc’s first independent trade union. At its height, the union had some 10 million members and was instrumental in the downfall of communism in the country.

Recapping the U.S. Election / Clinton’s Day in Asia / A Month to Honor American Indians

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The Republicans make big gains in U.S. midterm elections and President Obama offers his assessment. Secretary Clinton’s Asian travels take her to Malaysia and Papua New Guinea. Catch up with Brad Pitt and his effort to bring green housing to New Orleans. Learn about ArtsLink, a program that brings artists from around the world to the United States. Tajikistan is getting an energy boost. A 1,000-year-old Iranian poem is the inspiration for some awesome illustrations. And, it’s American Indian Heritage Month in America.

Election Gains for Republicans
Republicans gain at least 60 seats in the House of Representatives in U.S. elections November 2, more than enough to wrest control of the chamber from the Democrats. This means a divided government for at least the next two years, as Democratic President Obama shares power with Republicans in the House. Democrats retain control of the Senate, but with a reduced majority.

Obama: The Economy Hurt Democrats
The American electorate demonstrated its frustration with the state of the economy when it stripped Democrats of their majority in the House of Representatives and trimmed their majority in the Senate, President Obama says.

Clinton Praises Malaysia’s Religious Tolerance
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is praising Malaysia’s commitment to religious tolerance during her visit to the Muslim-majority country. “Extremism is not a path to building sustainable prosperity, peace, stability or democracy – it only promotes conflicts and hardens hearts,” she says. 

Human Rights in Papua New Guinea
During a visit to Papua New Guinea, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton encouraged the country to address its human rights conditions and to strengthen anti-corruption efforts. Clinton also offered to help the government set up a sovereign wealth fund to manage resource revenue from oil and natural gas fields, in order to translate “natural resources into widespread prosperity.”

Green Homes Make it Right
Make It Right, a foundation created by actor and film producer Brad Pitt, builds energy-efficient, green homes to replace housing destroyed in New Orleans by Hurricane Katrina. In three years, the foundation has completed 50 homes in New Orleans’ Lower 9th Ward. Another 30 are under construction.

ArtsLink Fellows Come to America
Visual artists, photographers, filmmakers and arts managers from 14 countries are currently enjoying five-week residencies in the United States under awards offered by U.S.-based international arts organization, CEC ArtsLink.

Green Energy for Tajikistan
The U.S. embassy in Dushanbe, Tajik government agencies and international partners, are working together to bring alternative energy solutions to Central Asia. The projects include the use of solar, water and wind power to provide energy to remote locations.

Shahnameh on Display
The Smithsonian Institution is celebrating the Shahnameh’s 1,000 years with an exhibition of some of the best illustrations ever created for Iran’s greatest epic poem. The Shahnameh’s stories cover the reigns of 50 kings, real and imagined, from the creation of the world up to the Arab conquest of Iran in the 7th century.

American Indian Heritage Month
November is National American Indian Heritage Month, which celebrates the heritage and contributions of American Indians and Alaska Natives — the first Americans — to the history and culture of the United States. Right, members of the Alabama-Coushatta Indian tribe from Livingston, Texas, wait to perform at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in April 2010.

Culture Change at an Electric Utility

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Daler Jumaev is one of many entrepreneurs coming to the Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship April 26-27, 2010, from countries with sizeable Muslim populations. He is director of Pamir Energy, Tajikistan’s only private power company, operating in the remote Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast. 

Barry Moltz is an American author of BAM! Bust A Myth: Delivering Customer Service in a Self-Service World.

Daler Jumaev

Daler Jumaev

Daler Jumaev:
I came to the company in 2007, when it was in crisis. There was a problem with the relationship with the community. The metering, billing, service, communications and tariff issues were not handled well by the company. Customers, for their part, used all kind of excuses to steal energy and not pay. Most of the customers did not have meters. It was a very, very difficult relationship with the community as well as with the local and central governments.

We started to make group disconnections because almost everybody had high debts. But we also started to have community meetings where we went to the people and said, “Let’s discuss the problems.” The first meetings were very unpleasant. There were lots of frustrations, lots of arguments. People insulted us. There was dissatisfaction.

We knew they would have to change their perceptions toward the utility services. We just took our time and explained and explained it. I often personally went on the TV and explained where we were. Every month we printed a newsletter. We identified the top 10 questions people asked and answered those.

At the same time we increased efficiency. We had power losses of 39 percent. Today, we have losses of 23 percent, and for 2010 I put the target at 18 percent. Before, we had only 12 hours a day of power in the winter in the biggest towns. Today we are providing 22 to 23 hours of electricity per day in winter time to all our customers on the main grid. We are changing the habit of the customers so they are using less power. We’re not only meeting the demand, but we are also exporting power to other regions. We’re going from the worst-served area of the country to the best, despite having the most difficult weather.

The major challenges were changing perceptions and the mentality of all the stakeholders. People were happy because the CEO of the biggest company came and listened and took some notes and made some changes. It was crucial that we followed up and they saw the results: new meters, better service, a billing system and more power.

Barry Moltz

Barry Moltz

Barry Moltz:

Most entrepreneurs in the United States don’t have to deal with the type of crisis management that Daler Jumaev does in Tajikistan. American entrepreneurs may not get the support we like from our employees or our customers, but we don’t typically have to deal with outright theft of our products.

Mr. Jumaev was successful because he started listening to his customers as a way to get them to pay their bills and stop stealing from his company. Most customers just want a forum to be heard even if you are unable to solve their problems right away. As the CEO, this is exactly what Mr. Jumaev did. After the meetings, he kept communicating with his customers on TV and in newsletters. He showed real action he was taking. In the process, he was able to actually improve the efficiency of the service that he provided to all his customers by now providing 23 hours of power to the main grid. Mr. Jumaev was able to add new meters and a new billing system. The result was a 100% increase in service just by listening to customers!

What can we learn? Don’t ask how you can help the customer. Ask how you can make them more satisfied. What great customer service is varies from customer to customer and time to time. No one size fits all. A company needs to ask each time how they can make that customer more satisfied. Be prepared to listen for the answer and take action on what you hear.