Madina Saiffidinova, Red Crescent Tajikistan
Even elderly people in Tajikistan cannot recall when the country experienced such a harsh winter. Temperatures this winter have fallen below minus 20 degrees Celsius, which is extremely unusual for the region. The effects of the cold wave were made worse by frequent power shortages. In some villages, people only have electricity one or two hours a day, and the power supply to the capital city Dushanbe is reduced to ten hours a day - five hours of electricity in the morning and five in the evening. This rationing is applied to all buildings – commercial, administrative and private homes.
Since the early 1990’s, the central heating systems in Dushanbe and other cities have not met the energy demands of the population, particularly during this very cold winter. People in apartment blocks have no alternative available to heat their homes besides electricity from the city. And those who live in houses and who use stoves are forced to limit their heating because the prices for coal, gas and kerosene have risen sharply since fall 2007. At the same time prices for basic food items as flour, oil, bread and others have almost doubled.
The Red Crescent of Tajikistan, with support from the International Federation, has just finished distributing emergency items to more than 2,100 elderly lonely people in Dushanbe, Kurgan-Tube, Vakhdat and Somoniyon. They received thermos flasks, flashlights, candles, woolen socks and quilts to help them cope with the consequences of the prolonged energy crisis and the unusually cold winter temperatures.
In Dushanbe, the Red Crescent, working in close cooperation with the local hukumat (administration), set up a distribution point where elderly people can come to receive humanitarian assistance almost every day. For those who are bedridden, hukumat workers and Red Crescent volunteers pay home visits to bring them emergency goods.
“I thank the girls who come to help me. I live alone. My son is a pensioner, he is 73 years old,” says Hosiayat, who, at 94 years old, has not left her home for several years. “He cannot look after me very often and his pension is too small to share with me. My monthly pension is 47 somoni (about 13 US dollars). The main part goes to pay for utilities and nothing is left for food,” she explains. “This support will be helpful for me, especially a quilt and socks. It is very cold at night and I sleep dressed in warm clothes,” she adds.
Following a governmental decision taken some time ago, pensioners have lost the privilege to pay lower rates for utilities because of an increase in their pensions. Currently, the minimum pension in Tajikistan is 20 somoni, (about 7 US dollars per month). However, one liter of kerosene for a lamp costs between five and six somoni and daily consumption is usually two to three liters.
“My pension of 30 somoni does not allow me to eat every day. So, I am forced to beg for money or bread in the street,” says an old woman who came to the Red Crescent distribution point to receive help. Wearing a thin, dirty dress and a light jacket, she adds: “Sometimes, people working at the hukumat canteen keep some food for me. I do not have warm clothes and all my clothes are so shabby that I really feel cold in my small room without heating.”
The situation is aggravated by severe water shortages. Dilapidated water pipes around the country have either burst, clogged up or frozen. People no longer have running water in their houses and are forced to bring in water from outside several times a day. This shortage is particularly difficult for lonely, disabled and elderly people who cannot fetch their water for their basic needs.
At the Red Crescent distribution points, many elderly people also mention their need for food and the hope that the international community will help them survive these difficult times. The government of Tajikistan has requested assistance from the international community through an appeal for fuel and food. International agencies and organizations as United Nations agencies, the International Federation, Save the Children, CARITAS, CARE International and others, are responding in different sectors such as food, health, water, sanitation, hygiene articles, education and shelter.
After initially releasing more than 170,000 Swiss francs from its Disaster Relief Emergency Fund, the International Federation has launched an emergency appeal for more than 560,000 Swiss francs (euro355,000/540,000US$). The funds will be used to support the Tajik Red Crescent’s operation to provide some 5,500 elderly lonely people and women-headed families with emergency goods including thermos flasks, quilts, candles, kerosene stoves, plastic sheets and socks. In addition, the emergency appeal will also fund the distribution of seeds to plant onions, carrots, beans and potatoes as well as flour, oil and beans to support people through the winter.