Caravanserai

Kyrgyz businesses get boost from 4-year-long USAID project

By Asker Sultanov

BISHKEK -- The US Agency for International Development (USAID) is wrapping up a four-year programme that developed local businesses in Kyrgyzstan.

The $20.2 million (1.4 billion KGS) project has been assisting Kyrgyz companies since 2014 to increase sales volume, make better goods and boost production. It is scheduled to end June 30.

Kyrgyz companies are now able to compete in the international market, Kimberly Rosen, the mission director for USAID in Kyrgyzstan, told Caravanserai.

The project helped local companies buy construction materials and equipment and taught business owners new management techniques, she said.

The programme helped five Kyrgyz textile companies export to Europe, culminating in the signing of contracts worth $1.5 million (102.6 million KGS), according to Rosen.

The effort allowed Kyrgyz businesses to participate in international tourism fairs in London, Istanbul, Berlin and Madrid, she said.

The project helped attract "14 world-renowned tourist bloggers, with 1 million followers, to Kyrgyzstan," Rosen said, adding that "USAID was able to put up 86 tourist signs throughout Kyrgyzstan and improve the work of 17 Kyrgyz museums."

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