On November 23, 2023, a public Seed Bank was opened in the Shakhristan region with the participation of the Executive body of state power of Shahriston district, the Committee for Environmental Protection under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

The seed bank was created within the framework of the FAO-GEF project “Promoting the conservation of agrobiodiversity for sustainable food security and nutrition in Tajikistan”, which is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

At the opening ceremony of the seed bank, the Deputy Chairman of the Shahristan district, Mr. Mavlonkulzoda Rahmon, the FAO Representative in Tajikistan, Mr. Oleg Guchgeldiev and the representative of the Committee for Environmental Protection under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan, Mr. Shermatov Khisrav, spoke about the importance of the seed bank for conservation local varieties of cereals and pulses and their crop wild relatives for the importance of conservation and sustainable use of agrobiodiversity.

The purpose of establishing a seed bank is to conserve local crop varieties (landraces) and their wild relatives and enable local communities, in particular women, to have sustainable access to a variety of landrace seeds and to be able to collect and store the seeds in appropriate conditions.

Access to local and quality seeds is expected to positively impact crop production dynamics, which is one of the important factors in ensuring food security and nutrition. It is expected that this FAO project initiative will make a significant contribution to promoting action to protect rural agrobiodiversity through the conservation and revitalization of rare and indigenous genetic resources of crops and their wild relatives.

The event was also attended by representatives from the Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Forestry, the Committee for Women and Family Affairs of the Shahristan region, as well as employees of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Buragen production cooperative and the Association of Dekhkan Farms, local farmers, women and schoolchildren of the Shahristan region.

At the end of the event, the representative of FAO in Tajikistan, Mr. Oleg Guchgeldiev, and the representative of the Committee for Environmental Protection under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan, Mr. Shermatov Khisrav, handed over equipment and tools for gardening to farmers and peasant farms in the village of Firdasi, Shakhristan district, in particular a set of tools for gardening , sprayers, garden ladder and other equipment for the development of gardening and economic activities.

Within the framework of the project, it is planned to create such seed banks in the Rasht, Tajikabad and Baljuvan regions, which will contribute to the preservation and revival of local varieties of agricultural crops of their wild relatives, as well as the preservation of the local gene pool of genetic resources of agrobiodiversity.

Also within the framework of the project, it is planned to create nurseries, collection and mother gardens for the conservation of fruit and forest crops, which contribute to the conservation of genetic resources of agrobiodiversity and the local gene pool of the country.