31 March 2010
BIC highlights the work of Sergei Vorsin of Tajikistan's Taraqqiet Development Centre.
interview
1. Your name: Sergei Vorsin
2. Your organization: “Taraqqiet” Development Centre (taraqqiet means development in the Farsi language)
3. How long have you been involved in civil society activism?
I joined my first NGO in 1997. It was youth ecological centre and where I published a socio-ecological bulletin there. In 2004, I joined another NGO – a civil society support centre where I administrated a small grant program for community based organizations and small NGOs. In 2006, I along with two friends founded a new NGO, called “Taraqqiet” development centre where I currently work.
4. What drives you to be a civil society advocate?
It was very obvious that part of society lives very poor alongside a very small clique which is very rich. The inequity of the situation gives me a strong motivation to advocate for the rights of the poor majority who lack many social and economic rights. We began advocating for social and environmental rights. Then, we understood that one of the most important rights for poor people is their right to economic development. So, the development projects and programs became the main target for our campaigns.
5. Could you talk a little bit about your work with Taraqqiet? How did you get involved with them?
Together with two friends we decided to open a new NGO in 2006. At that time we were mostly providing educational trainings for NGOs on how to design projects, holding trainings on the monitoring and evaluation of projects and acting as consultants for those NGOs who were in need of improved fundraising and project design skills. Around the same time, we also won several grants for the evaluation of projects executed or supported by international agencies in the region. This also focused our attention on the projects supported by IFIs (ADB, WB, EBRD) and we began to monitor their activities. Currently, I am the acting executive director at the Taraqqiet centre and carry out most of our fundraising, management and informational activities.
6. In the context of energy, what do you think is the most pressing issue for the region?
In the context of energy, one of the most pressing issues is the provision of necessary energy for the people and infrastructure (including agriculture, water supply, education, medical services, private sector). Even with a huge energy potential in the region, local people are often left without an energy supply which is necessary for electricity generation, heating and cooking, etc. My personal point of view is that it is not necessary to construct new large energy infrastructure (such as new big hydro power stations, dams, heating facilities) but rather to use energy in a more efficient way. With the sole adoption of such efficiency practices, we (I mean Tajikistanians) could increase supply by 30% without huge additional investments. If we reduce those 30% losses we could supply many people and facilities with energy without new additional projects which need large investments.
7. Can you give an example of a successful IFI-funded energy project in the region? What made the project a success?
One example of a successful IFI-funded project is the rehabilitation of the Nurek hydropower plant. The project was funded by the ADB and allows for increased power generation during the winter time.
8. What type of WB-funded project would best meet the needs of the country?
I would say that it is most important for the WB to follow all internationally accepted environmental and social standards/safeguards in addition to carrying out very careful appraisals and needs assessments so that all its projects will meet country needs.
The problem is that the WB often applies the same model for different countries. For example, Bank consultants hired to work on the big hydropower projects are often the same staff who have worked on project after project. The Bank might use them for all their hydro projects, despite regional expertise or lack thereof, whether they are located in Laos or Tajikistan. These consultants very often apply the same frameworks that were developed for earlier projects. Sometimes this is problematic as was the case with an ADB funded project where the consultants, despite a sizeable research budget, didn’t do it properly. They failed to examine seasonal river fluctuations using analog river data for the project instead. Because of this oversight, both micro stations were not able to generate enough energy. During the winter, generation stopped entirely, despite the fact that providing the winter energy supply for two villages was main goal of the project.
9. Can you talk about a problem project in the region? Why did the project fail/not meet its objectives?
One example of a problem project in the region is a project funded by the ADB for the construction of two pilot micro hydropower stations in central Tajikistan. Despite the huge cost of the project ($0.8 million) both stations are not currently working. As I mentioned above, one of the main reasons that this project failed was that the developers of the project used a so called ‘river analog’ when they should have done a proper analysis of the hydro regime of the target river, including an examination of the geological and hydro regime. The ADB (and TA consultants) made several significant mistakes in their research.
10. What kind of reforms do you think the WB and other international financial institutions should adopt in order to better serve and collaborate with civil society?
First of all, the WB should be more open to the public. All its documentation should be free for public access. Another step could be the promotion of the active involvement of civic groups into the decision making process about particular projects and strategies.
11. What is the best way for someone to get involved in human rights/environmental activism?
Join an environmental or human rights NGO!
12. What can people outside Tajikistan do to advocate for human rights in Tajikistan and in the ECA region?
International NGOs such as BIC could not only bring experience on how to work with IFIs and advocate social and environmental rights but can also help us to bring our message to decision makers. Through the use of western media and public opinion in developed countries we could leverage public opinion to affect change at the IFIs as they are publicly funded organizations.
Read more
BIC's Europe and Central Asia webpage
BIC's strengthening local civil society capacity on IFIs and the power sector in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan webpage
BIC's World Bank Energy Strategy Review webpage