29 November 2012: The World Bank has approved a US$45.9 million grant for the Second Tajikistan Public Employment for Sustainable Agriculture and Water Resources Management Project. This grant provides temporary public employment opportunities to over 770,000 people living in the Khatlon province of Tajikistan.

Focused on the rehabilitation of irrigation and drainage infrastructure, the project is being conducted in partnership with the International Development Association and the Global Agriculture and Food Security Multi-Donor Trust Fund Program. The objective of the project is to scale up a previous project launched in 2010 and financed through the EU Food Crises Rapid Response Facility, which was responsible for income transfer and access to irrigation for 43,000 people.

The grant has the potential to directly assist 750,000 rural residents by improving access to irrigation in an area of 190,000 hectares of land. According to the World Bank, the project could also result in a 10% increase in crop yields. [World Bank Press Release]