[lg policy] Tajikistan’s President to Expand Russian and English Programs

[Fierman, William]

Tajikistan’s President to Expand Russian and English Programs
by admin34 | January 27th, 2016
http://languagemagazine.com/?p=125048

The President of Tajikistan, Emomalii Rahmon, addressed the Tajik parliament about future foreign language expectations for children. “I always stress the need to teach children to speak foreign languages, especially Russian and English,” Rahmon said. “These languages are most widely used around the world and only the knowledge of these languages can help develop new technologies and the country’s economy.” President Rahmon called on the education and culture ministries as well as the higher education institutions who create quality foreign language teachers to take the necessery steps to further promote Russian and English in Tajikistan. The official language of Tajikistan is Tajik, considered by some researchers to be a variety of Persian, and additional foreign language learning is expected to be inclusive with mother tongue education.

“Time will come when every Tajik citizen will speak the Russian and English languages as their mother tongue, such practice is accepted around the world and we must not lag behind in the development,” the President continued. In 2013 President Rahmon asked Moscow to Provide Tajikistan with Russian language learning materials and over 4,000 Russian language teachers, but nothing came of it. “There would need to be some kind of adequate monetary compensation, and people would have to be offered suitable conditions. Doing that would be very difficult,” said Dushanbe-based political analyst Parviz Mullojanov.

Mikhail Petrushkov, a Tajik representative of the International Coordination Council for Russian Compatriots, said that command of at least three languages in Tajikistan is the ultimate aspiration; “Parents want their children to get a good education and to have a greater access to educational resources in various languages,” Petrushkov said. “Parents understand that if they want a competitive education for their children, they need to study in Russia or Europe. So it would be just as well for their child to learn both English and Russian.” President Rahmon’s words align with this thinking, but concrete action has yet to develop.
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