page_title: Corruption in Tajikistan
section_title: Government corruption
hierarchical_section_title: Corruption in Tajikistan / Government corruption
caption_attribution_description: English: President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama pose for a photo during a reception at the Metropolitan Museum in New York with Emomali Rahmon, President of the Republic of Tajikistan. Тоҷикӣ: Эмомалии Раҳмон ба ҳамроҳи раиси ҷумҳури амрико Барак Ҳусейн Обама ва ҳамсаращ
context_page_description: Corruption in Tajikistan is a widespread phenomenon that is found in all spheres of Tajik society. The situation is essentially similar to that in the other former Soviet republics of Central Asia. Reliable specifics about corruption can be difficult to come by, however, as can hard information about the effectiveness of supposed anti-corruption initiatives.
  Corruption, according to a 2015 article in The Diplomat, is present in every aspect of Tajikistan's culture. Examples include students paying bribes for better grades, bribes for the release of prisoners, and “smugglers tipping border guards to look the other way” as well as many others. Freedom House said much the same thing in 2016, calling corruption a problem affecting every aspect of Tajik society.
  According to Transparency International, citizens of Tajikistan consider government bureaucrats and services to be the most corrupt institutions, with police, customs, and tax-collection authorities at the top of the list, followed by college and hospital administrators.
context_section_description: Tajikistan is not considered a free country; Freedom House has called the country's multi-party system a "democratic façade." Government employees and officials often extort money from citizens, especially from civil servants. For instance, some public employees were required to buy shares in the Rogun Dam in order to keep their jobs.
  Owing to corruption, incompetence, and a lack of public resources and facilities, the country's government administration is highly inefficient, and bribery is common. Farmers and entrepreneurs in particular have to deal with corrupt officials on a regular basis.
  The current regime is awash in patronage, cronyism, and self-enrichment. Political and economic power is concentrated the hands of the family of Emomali Rakhmon, president since 1992. The government has ties to organized crime and accountability is rarely present.
  U.S. diplomatic cables leaked in 2010 noted that members of Rakhmon's family and inner circle are widely viewed as being the most corrupt people in the country. An example of the problem of nepotism at the highest level is Rakhmon's son Rustam Emomali, who by his mid-20s had already been a member the Dushanbe city council, head of the Tajikistan Football Federation, owner of a major football club, head of the Customs Service, and head of the country's anti-corruption agency. In January 2017, Rustam Emomali was appointed Mayor of Dushanbe, a key position, which is seen by some analysts as the next step to the top of the government. Similarly, the president made his daughter Ozoda Emomali as the deputy minister of foreign affairs in 2009, and five years later appointed her as first deputy minister. Her husband, Jamoliddin Nuraliyev, became first deputy finance minister in 2008 and a deputy chairman of the National Bank in 2015.
  Generally speaking, details of government budgets are not made available to the public. Government officials and high-level employees are required by law to disclose their assets, but their declarations are never audited.
  Corrupt Tajik officials have siphoned billions of dollars from state-owned banks and enterprises into offshore accounts. According to the IMF, about $3.5 billion, or more than a third of the country's annual GDP, has ended up in such accounts. The state-run Talco aluminum smelter is owned by British Virgin Islands-based firms, and its revenue, instead of being returned to the state budget, has been used as a slush fund for Tajik officials.
caption: President Emomali Rakhmon with President Barack Obama and wife Michelle Obama
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