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Tajikistan and Afghanistan EDUCATION, DAIRY AND NUTRITION PROGRAM IntroductionAs a result of the Education Dairy and Nutrition Program (EDNP) 22,000 children living in Gorno-Badakhshan, Tajikistan and 16,000 living in the border districts of Badakhshan, Afghanistan receive 250 milliliters of fortified milk each day at school. In order for children to receive the milk, they must report to school. Since milk distribution began in Tajikistan in October 2002, teachers report that children are enthusiastic about coming to school and have observed a positive difference in students' attention spans. In addition to the nutritional benefits that will result for school children in the two regions, EDNP will also generate a source of new grants funding basic education activities such as school rehabilitation, curriculum development and teacher training; the University of Central Asia; and a livestock and dairy program designed to help build capacity among local farmers and producers.
The Education Dairy & Nutrition Program is a unique partnership between the Aga Khan Foundation U.S.A., the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Agribusiness Management Company (a private, for-profit Nebraska-based agribusiness company). This groundbreaking partnership weaves together an elaborate chain of collaboration involving the U.S. government, a private milk processing plant in Kazakhstan, many logisticians from the Mountain Societies Development Support Program (MSDSP), teachers, school supervisors, members of parents' committees at local schools, FOCUS Humanitarian Assistance in Afghanistan, the Gorno-Badakhshan Department of Education in Tajikistan, and various AKF staff members. The Journey of the MilkBefore the milk arrives to the Tajik and Afghan school children, it travels on a very long and interesting journey. The milk originates in the United States. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has a program of collecting milk from U.S. farmers and processing it into powdered milk, so it can be stored safely for longer periods. In 2002, USDA donated 5,000 metric tons of nonfat dry milk (NFDM) to Aga Khan Foundation U.S.A. to support the Foundation's food distribution efforts in Tajikistan and Afghanistan. The sacks of NFDM are loaded onto ships at U.S. ports and travel half way around the world to Almaty, Kazakhstan � which is located in Central Asia , north of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan .
From the ship, the sacks are loaded onto trains and taken to the milk processing plant in Almaty. AKF USA has made arrangements with a private company, Agribusiness Management Company (AMC), as a partner, to process the milk at the Food Master processing plant. From its powdered form, the milk is turned into liquid milk and pasteurized. At the Food Master plant, vitamins and flavoring are added, before the milk is packaged into little 250 ml TetraPak single-serving containers. These containers are designed to keep the milk fresh and safe for up to six months. The containers are boxed into cases and delivered to the train station in Almaty, where the milk continues another long journey. By train, a large shipment of milk travels to Osh, Kyrgyzstan where there is a logistics base, and is put into warehouses for temporary storage. In coordination with the MSDSP, a non-governmental organization set up by AKF in Tajikistan ten years ago, the milk is loaded onto trucks in Osh and then delivered to villages and towns throughout Gorno-Badakhshan. Once the milk arrives in the local community, the community members under the supervision of a local MSDSP logistician help to distribute the milk to various schools. Especially in the winter months when the deep snow poses difficult transportation challenges to reach some of the more remote schools, members of local school parents' committees will donate their time and resources, in this high mountain region, to make sure the milk gets to the school children. The milk that is destined for the children in Badakhshan, Afghanistan , is trucked from Osh to Khorog and Darwaz, two towns in Tajikistan along the border with Afghanistan . FOCUS Humanitarian Assistance then takes the responsibility to deliver the milk across the border to four remote districts, Khwahan, Darwaz, Sheghnan and Wakhan. Along the border between the two countries flows the Pyanj River. FOCUS uses a variety of transportation methods to get the milk across the river. To get the milk to Sheghnan, FOCUS loads it on vehicles and drives across the new bridge at Tem, Khorog that was built in November 2002 with the support of His Highness, the Aga Khan. On the Afghan side, there is a new road that was constructed by FOCUS through a food-for-work program that leads straight to the schools in Shegnan, where the milk is delivered. For the schools in Wakhan, the milk goes by truck across a small bridge in Ishkashem and then it is a very long drive along the Wakhan corridor to get to the remote schools.
In Darwaz, a new bridge is currently under construction. While the bridge is being constructed, a cable crane has been erected that is used for transporting building materials from one side to the other. The milk is loaded into a large container and using the mechanical pulley system, it is carried across the river to the Afghan side where volunteers load the milk on donkeys or carry it by hand to the cluster of schools in that area. Rubber dinghies are also used to transport the milk across the river to the Afghanistan side, where it is loaded up onto donkeys and taken to schools. To meet Ramzi, one of the children whose life has been affected positively and in unexpected ways by the delivery of milk, click here.
An initiative of Aga Khan Foundation U.S.A
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