Press Box

Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, 26 August 2010 – A group of 22 instructors from vocational schools in Batken, Osh and Jalal-Abad oblasts will advance their qualification in a three-day intensive training on Construction and Restoration of Seismic  Adobe Houses on August 26-28, 2010 in Osh.  The training program has been developed by the School of Professional and Continuing Education (SPCE), the first operational education program of the University of Central Asia (UCA).

In July 2010, Minister of Labour, Employment and Migration of the Kyrgyz Republic, Aigul Ryskulova met with the donor community and international organizations to encourage their support for the reconstruction efforts in the South of the country. Following the meeting, SPCE conducted a training needs assessment in construction techniques in the South. The assessment showed that there is an urgent need for a training in construction of adobe buildings which are widely used in the South. In response to this need, UCA-SPCE develop a program that will enhance qualification of vocational schools instructors and help to ensure that households are built back better and in a manner that mitigates against the considerable seismic risk facing the South.

The training will be held with the support of the State Committee on Professional and Vocational Education under the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Migration of the Kyrgyz Republic which is responsible for the selection process and will further provide conditions for the educators to share new skills with construction workers and local population in their respective oblasts. The training will be held in the following areas:  construction techniques of adobe blocks; anti-seismic reinforcement of existing buildings and placement of seismic belts in adobe houses; thermal covering and construction budget.  

According to the Head of the State Committee on Professional and Vocational Education Talaaibek Cholponkulov, the training is unique and timely: “Seismic resistant construction techniques are not included in a standard curriculum of vocational schools and the program has been developed by SPCE especially for the South of the country.”  

In the course of the training, UCA-SPCE will demonstrate a film Five Minutes for Life in Kyrgyz and Russian Languages and will use accessible teaching materials on seismic resistant construction techniques.

For further information please contact:

Gulnara Djunushalieva

Director of School of Professional and Continuing Education

University of Central Asia

138 Toktogula Street

720001 Bishkek

Kyrgyz Republic

Tel: +996 312 910 822 additional 200 

Fax: +996 312 910 835

Note:

The University of Central Asia

The University of Central Asia was founded in 2000 by the governments of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan, and His Highness the Aga Khan. It is the world’s first internationally chartered institution of higher education. The International Treaty and Charter establishing this secular and private University was signed by His Highness the Aga Khan and the Presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, ratified by the respective parliaments and registered with the United Nations. For more information on UCA, please visit website at www.ucentralasia.org.

The Aga Khan Development Network

His Highness the Aga Khan is founder and Chairman of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), a group of private, non-denominational development agencies working to empower communities and individuals to improve living conditions and opportunities, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, Central and South Asia, and the Middle East. The Network’s nine development agencies focus on social, cultural and economic development for all citizens, regardless of gender, origin or religion. The AKDN’s underlying ethic is compassion for the vulnerable in society. Its annual budget for social development is US$ 500 million. In Kyrgyzstan, more than 890 people, most of who are local citizens, are directly employed by AKDN and its various agencies. For more information on AKDN, please visit website at www.akdn.org