Hissor, Tajikistan October 12, 2018 – Chargé d’Affaires of the U.S. Embassy Kevin Covert joined Deputy Minister of Education and Sciences  Fatkhiddin Usmonzoda, local authorities, education officials, teachers and students continued a large-scale book donation campaign as part of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) primary grade literacy program in Tajikistan.

The United States government, through USAID, will donate over 140,000 books for students in grades 1-4 to more than 1,000 Tajik and Russian public schools throughout Tajikistan. This is the second installment of books donated by USAID in 2018.  More than 7,200 books were recently given to children who participated in “Best Reader” competitions at summer camps across the country.

In the coming month, schools will receive sets of 40 age-appropriate reading books in both Tajik and Russian languages that will support trained primary-grade teachers and librarians as they work to strengthen students’ reading skills in classroom and afterschool activities, as well as encourage parents to read with their children at home. USAID will continue to support the development of new reading materials for primary-school students to increase access for teachers, students, schools, and communities to age-appropriate books in order to build a strong foundation for primary grade students’ lifelong learning and to expand the culture of reading in Tajikistan.

USAID has been working closely with the Tajik Ministry of Education and Sciences throughout the process of selecting, writing, and distributing the books. All of the donated books have been approved by the ministry. The USAID Read with Me Project is one of the many assistance projects made possible by the American people through USAID.