Low salaries and lack of social benefits cause an outflow of school teachers from Tajikistan – it is a matter of deep concern in society.
At the latest press conference, the journalists learned that 2,067 teachers quit their jobs in 2021 in the Khatlon region in the south of the country alone, according to the Ministry of Education.
Local media report that the situation in other regions of Tajikistan is similar. There is a shortage of teachers in educational institutions; some of the teachers migrate, others quit the profession.
At a press conference on February 3, the Minister of Education and Science of Tajikistan Muhammadyusuf Imomzoda confirmed that there was an outflow of Tajik teachers, but said it should not be made a ‘big deal’ of.
According to him, this process is natural, and the reasons for the teachers’ resignations are different, including death or relocation.
“For example, a teacher moves from one district of Tajikistan to another and continues to work in another district,” the Minister said.
The Minister of Education did not provide total statistics on the outflow of teachers from the country but stated that schools in Tajikistan required 1,124 teachers.
Meanwhile, the discussions in the Tajik segment of social media show that people believe the teachers’ low salary is one of the main reasons for their resignations.
At a press conference in Dushanbe on February 9, the Minister of Labour, Migration, and Employment of the Population Shirin Amonzoda confirmed that teachers and doctors had the lowest salaries in the country. The average salary of Tajik teachers is 1,244.2 somoni ($110), of doctors – 1,025.3 somoni ($90). In rural areas, the wages are even lower.
Facebook users are concerned about the quality of education and the outflow of teachers. They suggest the government to take serious actions to solve this problem.
“The state and the Ministry of Education should be the first to raise the teachers’ salaries to make them fully committed. Having such a [low-Tr.] salary and coming to school, teachers have to think about what to do next, where else to find a source of income to support their families – to eat healthy food, to buy clothes for children, to maintain a house; these issues worry any teacher with a low salary. They cannot work properly when there is not enough money to survive. Every specialist who earns well will value his/her job,” Facebook user Nasiba Mirzoeva commented on the news about teachers’ resignations on the Asia Plus Facebook page.
The teachers also complain about their low salaries and say it is impossible to live on it.
Zaynab Rahmatova has been working in one of the secondary schools in Dushanbe for 20 years. She earns about 1,500 somoni (about $130) and complains that now, it is very difficult to live on such a salary.
She said that her eldest son was in his third year at the State Medical University. The annual tuition fee is about 10,000 somoni ($885). At the beginning of every year, she takes out a loan from the bank to pay for his studies.
“When I receive my salary at the end of each month, I pay part of it to the bank. We live the next month on the remaining amount. Look at the prices for butter, flour, meat! Everything is very expensive, not to mention the prices for other essential goods. There are times when we run out of money in half a month. I have to borrow groceries from a grocery store near my house. We work hard for a whole month and at the end of it, I have to spend my salary to pay debts,” said the teacher in CABAR.asia interview.
There are many similar stories in Tajikistan.
Mahina Khidirova worked as a tutor at one of the country’s medical universities for several years. She migrated to Russia two years ago. She believes that low salaries, high market prices, bureaucracy, and a number of other factors led to the outflow of Tajik teachers.
“In 2018, I received 750 somoni a month (just over $66). I had two children: one went to kindergarten and the other – to school. My daughter’s monthly kindergarten fee was 320 somoni ($28). Now tell me, is it possible to live on 430 somoni per month ($38)?” she wonders.
Another teacher – Bakhodur Ergashev – left for Russia under the Program for Voluntary Resettlement of Compatriots and has been working there for six years. In Tajikistan, he worked in one of the secondary schools for 15 years. Low wages and lack of housing forced him to emigrate.
“During those 15 years, it was difficult to make a living, because I did not have my own house. I have three children and it was very difficult to buy food and clothes for them while renting the house. During the first two years, I went to Russia alone. I saved some money and applied for the Resettlement Program. Fortunately, we succeeded. My family and I came to Russia under this program and received Russian citizenship. I work as a teacher here for 6 years already. Now, we have our own house,” Ergashev said.
The experts discuss not only the low salaries of teachers but also the lack of social benefits for them.
A former Minister of Education Munira Inoyatova believes the situation will improve if teachers receive social support.
“Today, many teachers leave for Russia because the conditions for teachers there are much better. We, unfortunately, do not have the social support programs that exist in Russia today. For example, they supported the teachers during the pandemic,” she said.
Another problem is corruption, according to Inoyatova.
“To some extent, corruption has spread within the education sector, and people’s attitude towards this sector worsened significantly,” Inoyatova said.
The government uses different approaches to solve this problem. For example, during a press conference on February 5, the Chairman of the Sughd region Rajabboy Ahmadzoda said the teachers’ resignations caused concern.
He instructed the authorities of 18 cities and districts of the region to build free housing for young teachers. Ahmadzoda told reporters that construction of such houses has already begun in Khujand; when it is completed, about 300 teachers will be provided with apartments.
However, it is unknown how well such approaches can solve the problem.
According to the experts, the decisions and programs adopted by the government are not always implemented effectively.
Munira Inoyatova proposes to improve the implementation of the programs already adopted in Tajikistan. All of them look good on paper but are poorly implemented.
Daler Barombekov, a Head of the Sociology Department at the Tajik National University, agrees with her. He believes that the implementation of the various state programs is not considered during their creation.
“We receive a lot of money from the state budget for education development annually. According to media reports, Tajikistan spends the most on education in Central Asia. Despite this, teachers’ salary is not enough to make a living. The teachers and doctors are leaving the country because they cannot live on their salaries,” he said.
If the implementation of such programs and the conditions for teachers are improved, the situation can change significantly, since teachers do not want to migrate, according to the experts.
“We want to live in our Homeland so that our children can grow up in Tajikistan, but economic difficulties do not allow this,” Mahina Khidirova said.
Munira Inoyatova says the government should provide real benefits to teachers and doctors whose work improves the quality of people’s lives in the country.
According to local media, the outflow of doctors from the country, mainly to the Russian Federation, has also increased in recent years.