Author Archives: admin

Tajik bank asks EBRD for emergency loan

DUSHANBE, MAY 9 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — In the most serious indication so far that Tajikistan’s banking system is beginning to buckle under the pressure of this prolonged economic downturn, Tojiksodirotbank admitted it was on the brink of a liquidity crisis and that it had applied to the EBRD for a loan to save it.

Representatives of TSB, as Tojik- sodirotbank is commonly known, flew to London to meet with EBRD officials on the sidelines of its Annual General Meeting.

“Tojiksodirotbank, one of the country’s systemically important banks, needs financial assistance in the current situation,” TSB said in a statement.

Neither TSB, nor the EBRD commented on the size or the timing of the loan.

In March, Tajikistan’s Central Bank invited EBRD representatives to propose solutions to a worsening financial situation. The Tajik som has fallen heavily in value against the US dollar and all-important remittances are down by around 50% because a recession in Russia has wiped jobs for migrants.

This year nervous savers have been withdrawing money from banks they fear are on the edge of bankruptcy.

Also, the proportion of so-called non-performing loans (NPLs) in the system has skyrocketed. The proportion of loans that were 60 days or more overdue grew from 9.9% at the end of 2013 to 24% at the end of 2014, according to official data. Media has also said that this figure may be nearer 33% now.

Earlier this year the IMF said that TSB and its largest competitor, Agroinvestbank, were exposed to increased credit risk and could become insolvent.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 280, published on May 13 2016)

Editorial: Gay rights in Armenia and Azerbaijan

MAY 13 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – A report by the lobby group IGLA-Europe makes for discouraging reading. Propping up the league table on gay, lesbian and transgender rights in 49 countries across Europe and its near abroad are Azerbaijan and Armenia, split by Russia.

They scored 5% and 7%. Above them, halfway up the table, was Georgia with 30%. The fine-print said that the report was primarily concerned with the legal framework established in each country to allow gays, lesbians and transgender people the same rights and protections as everybody else.

The IGLA’s assessment, in Armenia and Azerbaijan at least, was that this appears to be near zero.

And this is reflected in news reports of attacks on homosexuals and other minorities in Azerbaijan and Armenia.

Importantly, though, it is not just people with different sexual orienta- tions who are potential targets in these countries. The same group-think extends towards opposition activists, overly pious Muslims and journalists. They are all marginalised. This whole mentality needs changing.

ENDS

(Editorial from Issue No. 280, published on May 13 2016)

Strong GDP growth, says Turkmen President

MAY 7 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Turkmen president Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov said that the country’s GDP was 6.3% higher in January-April 2016 than the same period in 2015. The EBRD has predicted Turkmenistan’s GDP will increase by 6.5% this year and 7.1% in 2017. Last year, Mr Berdymukhamedov devalued the manat currency by 19% and imposed austerity measures, phasing out free gas supplies and other subsidies.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 280, published on May 13 2016)

US freezes Kazakh businessman’s assets

MAY 6 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – A US court froze a $21m payment that Kazakh businessmen Mukhtar Ablyazov and Viktor Khrapunov had sought from the sale of their stakes in Chetrit’s Flatotel, a hotel located in New York City. In 2013, French police arrested Ablyazov, charging him with embezzlement. Courts in Kazakhstan, Switzerland and the US have opened investiga- tions into corruption allegations aimed at Khrapunov when he was mayor of Almaty between 1997 and 2004.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 280, published on May 13 2016)

Azerbaijani SOCAR announces gas deal with Russia

MAY 11 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – The head of SOCAR, Azerbaijan’s state energy company, Rovnag Abdullayev, announced that the company would buy from Russia’s Gazprom 5b cubic metres annually. SOCAR needs the gas to hit growing demand and also to inject into oil wells to expand production. Relations between Russia and Azerbaijan have been improving.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 280, published on May 13 2016)

Court in Tajikistan sentences opposition

MAY 11 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – A Tajik court sentenced Bakhtiyor Nazarov, son of former deputy minister of defence Abdukhalim Nazarzoda, to 22 years in prison for inciting riots and calling for a revolution. In September 2015, Nazarzoda allegedly organised a coup against President Emomali Rakhmon. The Tajik security forces later killed Nazarzoda and accused several members of the opposition Islamic Renaissance Party of masterminding the attack.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 280, published on May 13 2016)

Russia says it needs to approve Turkmen-Azeri trans-Caspian pipeline

MAY 12 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Russia’s ambassador-at-large for Caspian affairs, Igor Bratchikov said that the Kremlin will not allow the construction of any projects across the Caspian Sea that are not sanctioned by all littoral states. “Unilateral action on construction of Trans-Caspian pipelines is inadmissible,” Mr Bratchikov said. Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan have discussed for years the possibility of building a trans-Caspian gas pipeline.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 280, published on May 13 2016)

ADB lines up $1.5b loan for Azerbaijan’s Shah Deniz

MAY 6 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – The Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) said it is considering a series of loans worth a total of $1.5b to fund the second phase of Azerbaijan’s Shah Deniz offshore gas project, local media reported.

In March, the ADB had said it was considering lending $450m to Shah Deniz, which will be the main supplier for the so-called Southern Gas Corridor network of pipelines designed to pump gas from the Caspian Sea to Europe.

“The proposed investment plan will support the Azerbaijani government’s efforts to finance Shah Deniz- 2 project,” the bank said in a statement. “The investment plan is expected to be approved on August 22 by ADB’s board of directors.”

A consortium led by BP and SOCAR, Azerbaijan’s state-owned energy company, which will be the beneficiary of ADB’s loans.

The ADB said it will reach a final decision on the amount of the loans after a site visit in June.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 280, published on May 13 2016)

Rights groups accuse Tajik government over internet blackout

MAY 12 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Rights groups accused the Tajik government of blocking several news websites for two days, including Asia Plus and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Tajikistan is building up to a referendum on May 22 on extending the President’s powers, creating a potentially nervy period. Media freedom lobby groups regularly rank Tajikistan as one of the least free countries in the world.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 280, published on May 13 2016)

Uzbekistan Airways opens new routes to Russia

MAY 6 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – National carrier Uzbekistan Airways said it will open a new route to the Russian city of Voronezh, in south- western Russia. It will fly once every week connecting Tashkent and Voronezh from June 14. Thousands of Uzbek migrants work in Voronezh, in factories and in the construction sector.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 280, published on May 13 2016)