Emma Harden-Wolfson

Higher Education in Central Asia Blog (est. 2011)

  • Tajikistan: some social progress; a distance to go to achieve wellbeing for all

    I am impressed by the infographics used by the recently founded (2012) non-profit, The Social Progress Imperative. The Social Progress Index attempts to ‘measure the extent to which countries provide for the non-economic needs of their citizens’. Their argument goes that GDP is insufficient as a measure of wellbeing, that economic growth is not enough for a country… Read more

  • High heels in the headlines again

    What is it about Tajik educational leaders and fashion? Not content with the controversy this caused last year (see my articles high heels for higher learning and high heels hit the headlines), the Pro-Rector of the Tajik Pedagogical University has followed in the (high-heeled?) footsteps of his Rector Abdujabbor Rahmonov by banning several female students from class yesterday… for wearing shoes without… Read more

  • Studying abroad: no longer just a dream?

    Here’s a transcription (though not a literal translation) of a very informative 8 minute video from Radio Ozodi [ru]. It shows a growing interest in studying abroad, but the programme has a clear moral drive behind its interesting content – see the last paragraph. Makes me wonder if the Kazakh government didn’t inspire the piece: the… Read more

  • Stripped to their last pair of knickers… currency devaluation and protest in Kazakhstan

    With everything that’s going on in Ukraine, you’ve probably missed a much smaller scale series of protests that have taken place this month in Kazakhstan. These protests, stimulated by the government’s decision to devalue the tenge (Kazakh currency) by nearly 20%, are nonetheless noteworthy. Pretty much for the first time in its post-Soviet existence, young people in… Read more

  • Academic freedom restricted in Tajikistan

    It’s all rather Soviet.. criticism, freedom of speech and free movement are all being restricted in Tajikistan. The article below from the reliably good Konstantin Parshin outlines yet another example of academic freedom being curtailed in the country. When will the government realise that this will only create more opposition? (c) K. Parshin, http://www.eurasianet.org/node/67986 Tajikistan: Intellectuals… Read more

  • East is east: university partnerships work all ways

    The Korea Times this week reported on an initiative by the country’s new Uzbek Ambassador to encourage Korean universities to open branch campuses in Uzbekistan. This is an interesting initiative, both in that it’s being initiated by Uzbekistan – not known for its openness to the world – and as a demonstration that university partnerships… Read more