Help us create 120 school seats for rural children

Dear donors, 

Dear partners,

At the outset, we would like to extend our sincere appreciation to each and everyone of you for choosing our cause among so many wonderful initiative across the GlobalGiving. Thanks to your generosity, we have been able to improve the living standards of rural underserved population in the remote areas of Tajikistan.  

We are pleased to let you know that we have supported the School No 10 in Ghazantarak Village of Devashtich District with connection to high-speed internet in July 2023 to improve the access of the school's teachers and students to various educational resources. The high-speed internet connection enabled the school's English teachers to enroll to online courses for professional development, including OPEN (https://moocs.openenglishprograms.org/) courses and obtain their certificates of completion. Some teachers are currently enrolled into a TESOL (Teaching English as a Second Language) course and are successfully attending it. These activites will eventually improve the knowledge of teachers on the latest methods of teaching English and contribute to education of the entire school's students (1200). We spent approximately USD 500 for this project. The payment voucher is attached to this report. 

We are proud that Makhfirat, one of our participants of Online House for Peace and Understanding was accepted to the Future Leaders Exchange Program (FLEX) funded by the U.S. Government. She is now enrolled in the Richfield School in Minesota, U.S.A. and is successfully pursuing her 12th grade in the U.S. We believe this success story will serve as an impetus for other students of our programs and we will be able to contribute more to the societal development by training such prospective leaders.  

We will continue our efforts to further support education in remote areas to enable the underserved people to get access to resources and the latest achievements they are deprived of. We take this opportunity to once again extend our appreciation to each and everyone of you for being with us and taking care of people in need in rural areas of Tajikistan.

Sincerely,

Muhiddin Tojiev

Partnerships and Fundraising Officer

• Payment Voucher for Internet Installation (PDF)
  

Dear valued donors,

We are thrilled to share with you a recent achievement in our project. Thanks to your generous contribution, we were able to purchase 15 tonnes of reinforcement materials for the construction of the basement of School No. 64 in Somoniyon Village, Isfara City, Soughd Province, Tajikistan.

The school was completely destroyed in the armed conflict on the Tajik-Kyrgyz border on September 14-18, 2022, leaving almost 500 students and 50 teachers displaced. During the severe winter with record low temperatures, students and teachers had to travel 6km to attend school as there was no alternative in their village. In response to this critical situation, we have decided to contribute to the construction of a new building for the school to provide access to education for 500 students in their own village.

After consulting with the Isfara City Executive Authorities, we learned that they had secured financial support of USD 200,000 for the construction of a new building with 7 classrooms, one room for teachers, and one room as the office of the School Principal before the conflict. However, due to the conflict, which resulted in loss of life, the Soughd Province Governor instructed to construct the school with a basement, which could be used as a shelter in case of need. As a result, the initial estimate increased by TJS 850,000 (almost USD 80,000 according to the current exchange rate).

Thus, the Isfara City Executive Authorities requested our assistance in procuring 15 tonnes of reinforcement and 16m3 of wood. After studying the market prices and considering our financial capacity, we decided to support them by procuring 15 tonnes of reinforcement. The procurement was done in consultation with the Construction Company Engineer contracted for the school construction to ensure that they receive the necessary products.

On April 25, 2023, we procured the 15 tonnes of reinforcement in the presence of representatives from the construction company, NGO Sadoqat, and the beneficiary school, following a transparent and participatory approach. The total cost was TJS 141,125 (USD 12,741), which we were able to mobilize through various methods, including two charity concerts, direct grants from donor companies, and donations from our generous supporters via GlobalGiving.

We are happy to report that the reinforcement has been successfully delivered to the project site and we hope that it will assist the local authorities in accelerating the construction of the school, so that the students can pursue their studies in their village without having to travel long distances. We have attached some pictures and videos of the procurement and delivery process, as well as the invoice of procurement to this report.

However, the financial need for this project remains significant, given the additional unexpected costs that have arisen. We have agreed with the Isfara City Executive Authorities to provide further support for the procurement of furniture, and we hope that with the continued generosity of our donors, we will be able to achieve this milestone as well.

Once again, we express our heartfelt gratitude to you for choosing our cause among so many other worthy initiatives on GlobalGiving, and for your ongoing support of the education of underprivileged young people in remote areas of Tajikistan. We value your support and kindly request that you share our cause with your friends, colleagues, and family members, to help us do even more for those in need.

Links:

• Process of downloading reinforcement in the project site

Dear friends!

It is with great pleasure that we inform you about the Charity New-Year Children's Concert "New Year Dreams", which we successfully held on December 25, 2022 in Kohi Surush Concert Hall in Dushanbe. Obviously, we could not have ensured such success without the help and support of our true friends.

The objective of the concert was to raise funding for rehabilitation of the Secondary School No 64 in Isfara City of Tajikistan, which was fully burnt as a result of the armed conflict on the Tajik-Kyrgyz border on September 14-18, 2022. Except our expenditures, we raised around 20,000 Tajik Somoni, which is equivalent to USD 2000. All funds raised at this concert will be channeled for restoration of the above-mentioned school. Reports on the use of funds will be shared with our esteemed donors, partners and those, who have become a part of this good cause.

Taking this opportunity, we express our heartfelt gratitude to our esteemed donors, partners, masters of ceremony, creative team, volunteers, friends who spread the word - to everyone who took part in organizing and holding this event. Our friends made a double contribution: they provided an opportunity for children from vulnerable groups (children with disabilities and children from boarding schools) to enjoy this event, and on the other hand, they helped raise funds to improve the lives of those in need in rural areas. The concert was held at a high level thanks to the professionalism and dedication of each member of our friendly team.

Thanks to the financial support of donors, students from boarding schools, children with disabilities, and children from low-income families were invited to the concert. Children and their parents enjoyed the concert a lot, received New Year gifts, and the winners of the competitions received memorable prizes from our partner - Muzaffar Charity Foundation.

May their goodness be rewarded from Almighty. We thank all of our dear donors, partners, performers, and volunteers for their dedicated work in this concert.

We wish you all Happy New Year of 2023. Looking back on this year, we can't help but be grateful for everything we've done together with your support and generosity. Thank you for your immense support in 2022. Anticipating your support in the upcoming year.

Please enjoy the concert video report on the link and some pictures from the concert process. 

 Respectfully Yours,

NGO Sadoqat Team

Links:

• Video Report of Charity New-Year Concert

Dear Valuable Donors,

We would like to avail this opportunity to once again thank you for your continuous support to our causes and your significant contribution in improving access to education in rural areas of Tajikistan.

Through this memorandum, we are delighted to inform you about our recent achievements. The Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency’s Representative Office in Dushanbe (TIKA Dushanbe) generously supported the renovation of the canteen of Secondary School No. 10 in Devashtich District of Tajikistan. This was the first project of this kind in the community we work since it has brought 12 Turkish students as volunteers to support the renovation process and to promote community service. As part of the project, we also conducted Tajik-Turkish Food Festival attended by the Turkish guests and local community, where the two parties offered their national cuisine and hosted each other in a warm family atmosphere. The Tajik and Turkish youth also enjoyed Evening of Friendship and mutual activities, where they performed national songs, and exchanged in culture and traditions.  

The school’s canteen in an operable state, with lack and broken furniture was in a dire situation before the project as no maintenance and no major renovation activities were performed since it was constructed in early 2000s. Another major deficiency was the absence of clean water neither for cooking nor washing hands. The facility also lacked cooking equipment inside and the cooks had to prepare meals outside in a traditional clay-made oven both in cold weather during winter and hot season during spring. Following the implementation of the renovation project, the canteen has modern facilities in line with the water, sanitation and hygiene standards, which we believe will provide students and personnel with clean and healthy meals. In addition to preventing various diseases and contributing to the improvement of the education environment by supporting and motivating both students and teachers.  

The project refurbished the canteen’s interior and exterior, upgraded the water and sanitation facilities, installed a new cooking equipment and provided a new set of furniture. It will benefit around 6300 beneficiaries, including nearly 1200 students and 100 teachers of the school as well as 5000 residents of Ghazantarak village by ensuring access to improved hygiene and sanitation conditions for meal intake. The project’s total cost is USD 53,000 with two major activities performed, USD 28,000 spent on renovation activities and USD 25,000 channeled for the exchange program to support the visit of 12 Turkish students to Tajikistan as well as administrative activities.

This project was implemented in line with the Turkish Government Exchange Program, which provided a great opportunity for 12 Turkish students to visit Tajikistan, to participate in the canteen renovation activities, and most importantly to get acquainted with their Tajik peers during three days of their visit to Devashtich district. The students from the two countries have participated in mutual activities promoting, discovering and exchange of reciprocal culture, traditions and customs of both countries, and mutually taking part in the project implementation as part of the community service. The students also played a friendly football game, which aims to strengthen their ties.

We take this opportunity to express our sincere gratitude to the TIKA Dushanbe, particularly to its Coordinator and dedicated staff for this excellent opportunity as well as all of you, dear friends, for your continuous support and generosity.

Last but not least, the GlobalGiving is conducting Little by Little campaign on September 12-16, 2022, under which all eligible donations up to $50 USD per unique donor per organization will be matched at 50% for the duration of the campaign. We would highly appreciate if you could publicly share information about this exciting opportunity among your friends and colleagues to mobilize more donations to our causes and enable our organization to support and participate in the growth and prosperity of underserved communities. We stongly believe we can do more with your valuable support, our dear friends! 

Dear Donors,

Distinguished Friends,

We are pleased to inform you about the start of a collaboration with English Without Borders Network Tajikistan (EWB) for English teaching capacity building in rural areas of Tajikistan. The objective of this cooperation is to enable English teachers from the remote Devashtich District of Tajikistan to improve their teaching methods, skills, and knowledge, the raise their awareness about various exchange programs and grant opportunities, and most importantly, to help them create a network for further professional improvement.

At the initiative of our NGO, EWB conducted two training workshops for 60 English teachers from the Devashtich District of Tajikistan on May 5 and May 25, 2022. The workshops were held by an experienced trainer, Ms Zaripova, in Secondary School No 1 in Ghonchi settlement - the administrative centre of Devashtich District. Ms Zaripova shared information about the EWB, conducted a needs' assessment survey among the participants to tailor future activities to the specific needs of English teachers, and made a presentation on EWB Master Workshop Program, which enables English teachers to apply for small grants provided for EL teacher training within the EWB project. In addition, she also delivered a session for workshop participants on how to effectively use and benefit from various online resources such as the EWB website and social media pages, as well as how to use contemporary methods of teaching English language.

This workshop was co-financed by both EWB Tajikistan and the NGO Sadoqat. The EWB  provided trainer and both organizers co-financed the cost of lunch provided at the end of the training. The lunch cost USD 2.5 per person, and USD 150 overall. 

We are excited to continue this collaboration to empower our dedicated English teachers from rural areas of Tajikistan and create a Resource Centre to help these teachers get access to various resources, exchange programs and grant opportunities, and empower their students to get better knowledge and to contribute to the development of their communities. 

We would like to avail ourselves of this opportunity to once again offer our heartfelt grtitude to our partners and to you, dear donors, for your continued support and motivation. It is our firm belief we can do a lot for our communities with your support. 

Please do not hesitate to spread the word about this initiaitve among your friends, colleagues and family, to help us mobilize more funding and do more for the communities in need. 

Sincerely,

NGO Sadoqat Team

Links:

• English Teachers Workshop Episode, May 5, 2022