D3 SYSTEMS, INC.

Educational Attainment and its Impact on Women’s Status in Central Asia

A Comparative Analysis of Public Opinion of Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan

Stephen Hornbeck Research Analyst

March, 2012

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Table of Contents

Introduction ...... 3 History of Education in Central Asia ...... 4 Differences Among Neighbors ...... 6 History’s Impact on Education ...... 7 Employment Opportunities ...... 9 State of Economic Dependence: Payment of Wages ...... 10 Conclusion ...... 13 Methodology ...... 15 Works Cited ...... 22

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Introduction

Survey research has a role to play in providing Muslim women with a public voice where custom and culture do not permit them their own. It can be used to inform and shape empowerment policies from the perspective of each population. The Women in Muslim Countries (WIMC) study is designed to measure women’s empowerment in actual daily practice, providing an in-depth look into the oft-perceived gap between current public policy and empowerment initiatives, as well as actual practice on the personal and local level. The answers are intended to yield a metric for promoting excellence in public policy by informing policymakers on women’s attitudes about the effects of policy initiatives, as well as a measure of the degree of effectiveness of those policies.

As part of a collective effort to understand the status of rights (in practice and beliefs) of Muslim women around the world, D3 Systems, Inc. (www.d3systems.com ) sponsors and manages the 26 country WIMC. The nationwide Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan survey, the focus of this report, consists of interviews with 1121, 1027, and 999 randomly selected Muslim women nationwide in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan respectively. The respondents were interviewed in person by native speakers, from November 14 to November 27, 2007. With a 95% confidence interval, results from this survey can be expected to have a margin of error of +/- 3 percent.

This report provides analysis of differences between three countries of the same region with overlapping histories. It addresses women’s attitudes and opinions on their rights, analyzes their economic status and looks at each of these factors through the lens of varying levels of education across and within the three countries. It provides a historical context, focusing on Soviet occupation and later independence in the late twentieth century, for how and why the educational standards vary between the countries. The results of this study indicate that the history of each country has created distinct social structures and conditions that have left lasting impressions on the status of women within each.

Due of the stark differences in Tajikistan’s history since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, this paper will focus on the educational conditions of women within Tajikistan in comparison to both Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. It will demonstrate that of the three countries, Tajikistan has the highest percentage of women who did not attend university and who stated their highest desire would be for a better education (19%). This limited access to education has inhibited much of the female population from working in higher paying jobs and has decreased their economic independence, as those with lower levels of education tend to work in jobs where the payment of the wages are made to other members of the household.

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History of Education in Central Asia

With the advent of Soviet control of Central Asia in the early twentieth century, government programs were designed and instituted to decrease the power and influence of religious leaders and the local oligarchs, subjugate the influence of Islam in the Soviet states, and increase the power of the lower and middle class segments of society as well as their loyalty to the state. These programs included land redistribution, educational reform and public works programs, such as the construction of libraries and cultural centers. Though these programs were originally designed to increase loyalty to the state, they had many unintended consequences.

Soviet education programs replaced traditional Arabic and Latin scripts with the Cyrillic alphabet and required primary education for the entire population. Bright and talented youth were recruited from the countryside and brought to urban centers to receive a higher quality education and to demonstrate the progress that the Soviet Union was making for the people. This also served to bring different ethnic, religious, and social segments of the population together to exchange ideas and dissipate ethnic tensions that had traditionally led to conflict within these societies.

Educational opportunities in the urban centers led to the retention of the educated youth in these areas due to the limited number of jobs in the rural areas. This movement and retention of the population in urban areas continues in Central Asia today. WIMC data indicates that in Kazakhstan, 67% of women who have enrolled in or have completed a university education currently live in urban areas compared to 33% who live in rural areas. Similarly, in Kyrgyzstan, 59% of university students or graduates are living in urban areas compared to 44% living in rural areas. In Tajikistan, which has a similar urban and rural population as Kyrgyzstan, the opposite situation exists where 65% of college students or graduates live in rural areas and 35% live in urban areas. The difference in Tajikistan may be due to the lack of employment opportunities currently available in urban Tajikistan as well as displacement of the urban population as a result of the Tajik civil war which left over 1 million people displaced.

Figure 1: Residence of College Educated Women 67% 65% 56% 44% 33% 35% Urban Rural

Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan Country

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This theory concerning the lack of employment opportunities in urban Tajikistan is supported by the WIMC data which reveals that women with higher education that live in rural areas actually have a higher rate of employment. Overall, 62% percent of Tajik women with a college degree living in rural areas are employed full-time compared to 45% of their urban counterparts. Furthermore, these educated Tajik women living in rural areas are more likely to work in areas of public health (28% rural women, 17% urban women) and education or culture (38% rural women, 20% urban women) while their educated urban counterparts have higher rates of working in trade (14% urban women, 3% rural women) and commercial services (14% urban women, 7% rural women).

Figure 2: Percentage of Employed College Educated Women by Residence

76% Tajikistan 52%

40% Rural Kyrgyzstan 50% Urban 43% Kazakhstan 59%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Educational programs instituted by the Soviet Union also helped to increase literacy rates among the population, improve the educational standards in both urban and rural areas, and increase the population’s perceived value of education. For example, the literacy rate in Tajikistan increased from 2.2% in 1926; to 71.7% in 1939 (Hiro, 2009, pg 56); and again to 93% in 1989 (Falkingham, 2000, pg 7). Although these numbers may have been inflated by the government of the period, they do represent a tremendous increase in literacy rates in Central Asia.

Soviet rule also set the minimum age of marriage to 16 for females while polygamy, payment of kalym (payment for a bride), and marriage without the bride’s consent were all banned. (Falkingham, 2000, pg 7) These initiatives helped to curtail traditional religious and social practices imposed on women which prevented them from pursuing a basic education.

During this time, social safety nets were provided to women when they started a family. Women were given two years maternity leave and guaranteed free health care for themselves and their children. (Hiro, 2009, pg 56) These circumstances provided women with the opportunity and ability to pursue ambitions

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beyond raising children. This further improved the educational achievement levels of women throughout Central Asia.

Through these programs, women of Central Asia were able to pursue higher education and were provided with the tools necessary to compete with men in the now accessible workplace. Access to the job market also led to an economic independence never before experienced by women in the region. Though there were few job opportunities after graduation and familial restraints prevented many women from joining the workforce, by the 1960’s, the average marriage age of women increased from 17 to 22 (Whitlock, 2003, pg 103). This gave women a greater decision making role within the family, and decreased the need for women to stay married for financial security.

Upon the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the legacy of these policies provided foundations for the Central Asian countries to develop their own distinct educational policies and structures. Although Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan continued to promote policies of universal education and high literacy rates (approximately 99% in these countries), social conditions after independence drastically affected the potency of these programs. (United Nations Development Programme, 2009, pg 171-173) The results of the WIMC study in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan also demonstrate how these varied social conditions have shaped the educational achievement levels of women within these countries and affected their socio-economic status and financial independence. Of the countries polled, in no country is the impact of today’s level of education on the respondent’s socio-economic status more evident than in Tajikistan.

Differences Among Neighbors

After the Soviet Union disbanded, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan went through relatively peaceful transitions to independence. Because of this transition, the countries were able to keep a large percentage of their primarily Russian bureaucracy and public servants (including professors and intelligentsia). Though the transitions in these countries did result in varied levels of corruption, violence, election rigging, ethnic tensions and protests, these countries also kept relatively close relationships with Russia, the United States and China. This ensured the retention of experienced bureaucratic employees, eased travel restrictions of migrant workers across local borders, bolstered economic support, and improved security. At the same time, the governments of Kyrgyzstan privatized industry, helping to secure international investment. These factors, as well as other social conditions and governmental policies, have led to higher standards of living and educational standards in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan today.

In contrast to its neighbors, Tajikistan, upon independence from the Soviet Union, plunged into a prolonged and violent civil war among various political, religious and ethnic factions. The civil war and the ensuing violence led to the mass emigration of Russian and European citizens who had made up much of the government and infrastructure of Tajikistan.

As many of the teachers and university faculty in Tajikistan were of Russian and European decent, the quality of post-secondary education and educational standards fell sharply during this period. The civil war also created thousands of war widows who now had the burden of raising children without the social

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safety nets that were available during the Soviet occupation, in an increasingly uncertain time. Adding further to these problems, in 2003 the government held a referendum to amend the constitution to eliminate free higher education in Tajikistan. This resulted “in falling literacy rates and life-spans of citizens.” (Hiro, 2009, pg 350) These issues led many families to place a higher priority on the education of the male bread-winners in the family and caused many families which were faced with poverty to marry off daughters or place them in religious schools that place a higher emphasis on the homemaking skills for women to make them more attractive as future brides.

As a result, the literacy rates of women have declined, especially in rural areas of Tajikistan. These conditions have also led to an increase in the frequency of child marriage and have left many women vulnerable to domestic abuse. In 2009, Amnesty International reported that nearly half of all Tajik women are abused or raped. (BBC News, 2009) In some extreme cases, women are victims of sexual trafficking to criminal elements preying on vulnerable families with few options and naive women looking for jobs. These criminal organizations promote themselves to under educated women or women looking for husbands as a means to be financially secure.

History’s Impact on Education

The differing development paths of each country after independence, combined with the current social and cultural systems of each country, have greatly affected the standards of education within each country. Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan today have higher ratios of women enrolled in school (combined primary, secondary, and tertiary) than men. Kazakhstan has a ratio of 1.08 females to males (ranked 32 nd in the world) and Kyrgyzstan with 1.06 females to males (ranked 43 rd in the world). In contrast, Tajikistan has a ratio of 0.84 females to males enrolled in school (ranked 154 th in the world) (United Nations). These findings are reflected in the WIMC study which indicates that the percentages of women who are enrolled in or have completed a university education are significantly higher in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan than in Tajikistan. 1

Figure 3: Educational Levels by Country

Kazakhstan 1% 34% 65% No Education Primary School Krygyzstan 1% 49% 50% Secondary School 1% 12% College/University Tajikistan 74% 14% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

1 Tajikistan was the only country in the study in which respondents stated that they had received no education.

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The WIMC study asks women what they believe would make their lives happier as a measure of their perceptions of what they most desire. When the women of the three countries were asked what one thing could change in their lives to make them happier, the highest percent of women who mentioned a better education came from Tajikistan (19%) compared to 7% of women in Kazakhstan and 8% of women in Kyrgyzstan (See Figure 4).

Figure 4: If you could change one thing to make your life happier, what would it be? 50% 40% 30% 19% 20% Better Better 7% 8%

Education 10% 0% Kazkhstan Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan (n=999) (n=1121) (n=1027)

Although Tajikistan has a high literacy rate (99%) and has mandatory primary education for the population, after primary school there is a sharp decline in the percent of women who continue with their education. Women are regularly taken out of secondary school due to the need to work for the family, religious reasons, lack of financial resources to pay for education, or to get married and start a family. The practices of “polygamy and child marriage [are] on the rise” (Hiro, 2009, pg. 351) throughout Tajikistan and women are frequently married off at a young age to prevent “kidnappings and rape by soldiers” and also because the families cannot afford to keep, support or educate them (Newman, 2006). These child marriages frequently end women’s paths to education, leave women without the economic resources to leave a marriage, sometimes resulting in abusive relationships.

Although 95% of females in Tajikistan enroll in primary school, 93% of these women complete primary school and only 75% enroll afterward in secondary school. Enrollment drops further as only 11% of women enter tertiary education (UNESCO, 2009). In comparison, 90% of females are enrolled in primary school in Kazakhstan, 86% are enrolled in secondary school and 42% enroll in tertiary education. These statistics are supported in the findings of the WIMC project in which Tajikistan shows high levels of respondents with secondary education (73%) and a sharp decrease in respondents that have tertiary education (14%).

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Employment Opportunities The benefits of education can be seen through the differences in the employment status of women of varying educational backgrounds. As women attain higher levels of education, the likelihood that they are a housewife/homemaker reduces drastically. In Tajikistan, 76% of females who did not make it past primary education are housewives compared to 52% of women who are enrolled or completed secondary education and 32% of females who are enrolled or have completed tertiary education. Similarly in Kazakhstan, 62% of women with primary education are homemakers compared to 43% of women with a secondary education and 32% of women enrolled in or graduated from the university level. Also, in Kyrgyzstan, 67% of women enrolled only in primary school and 64% of those enrolled in secondary school are housewives. There is a sharp decrease among women enrolled in or completing college who report being housewives in Kyrgyzstan at 36%.

As women’s education increases and their likelihood of being a housewife decreases, their opportunity for employment can be seen to increase. In Tajikistan, 9% of women with a primary education, 27% of women with secondary education and 55% of women with a tertiary education are currently employed or own a business. Women who had not received an education were either unemployed or were homemakers. These results are similar with the other countries of this study as 14% of women with primary education, 29% with secondary education and 54% of women enrolled in or graduated from college are employed in Kazakhstan. In Kyrgyzstan, no women who received only primary education are employed while 15% who received a secondary education and 46% of women who enrolled in or graduated college are currently employed. These comparisons are statistically significant with a p value of less than .05.

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Figure 5: Employment Status By Education Level Kazakhstan (n=1121), Kyrgyzstan (n=1027), Tajikistan (n=999)

100%

78% 80% 67% 67% 62% 64% 60% 54% Employed 51% 46% 43% Unemployed 40% 36% Housewife 40% 32% 34% 29% 26% 17% 18% 20% 20% 15% 17% 14% 14% 10% 15% 8% 10% 10% 4% 0% 0% 0% Tertiary Tertiary Tertiary Primary Primary Primary Secondary Secondary Secondary No Education Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan

Not only does higher education increase women’s chances of being employed, it also increases their access to fields that are traditionally associated with higher pay. For example, of those in Tajikistan that say they are employed, 49% of those with secondary education work in the agriculture. However, among Tajik women that have a university education, the percentage of those working in agriculture drops to 2% while those that work in education or culture increases from 4% to 33%, those working in public health increases from 3% to 26% and those in public service increases from 7% to 14%. Similarly, in Kyrgyzstan, 12% of those with secondary school education work in agriculture or forestry compared to 3% of those with a university education. Furthermore, as education increases, the number of Kyrgyz women working in education or culture related positions increases from 7% to 24% and those working in public service increases from 10% to 22%. These figures indicate that as a woman’s education increases so does her access to employment opportunities outside agriculture.

State of Economic Dependence: Payment of Wages In many patriarchal societies, wages for employment are sometimes paid directly to the head of the household in lieu of paying them directly to females. Women in the WIMC study who were employed

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were asked about the payment practices of their employer and whether payment was made directly to them or to someone in the household on their behalf. In the countries of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan it appears that the education of women did not have an effect on whether the wages were paid directly to them, as over 90% of women in each education bracket reported the wages were being paid directly to them.

However, in Tajikistan, as women’s educational attainment increases, so too does the likelihood that their wages will be paid directly to them. Of the women who were working and had only a primary education, only 33% received their wages directly from their employer while 58% had their wages paid to the household. Of employed women who had received a secondary education 79% received wages directly while 20% had their wages paid to someone in the household. A majority of women who were employed and were enrolled in or completed college were paid directly (90%), while 10% had their wages paid to someone in the household. Figure 6: Payment of Wages by Education (Tajikistan; n=354) 90% 79% 58% Paid Directly 33% 20% Paid to Someone Else 10% in Household

Primary Secondary Tertiary Education

Payment of wages directly to the women is an important aspect of ensuring economic independence of women and is also an important leveling factor in a marriage concerning who makes decisions on purchasing the daily needs of the family. As the results of the WIMC study show, increased education of a woman acts as a leveling device in the daily decision making of the family and gives women a greater voice within their own family unit. These results can also be seen when looking at the education of women and their decision making role in determining and meeting the daily needs of the family. As the level of education of the woman increases, the likelihood that their spouse will make all the daily decisions decreases dramatically. To reflect this finding, of married women who received primary education, 39% list the spouse as the decision maker compared to 36% of those with secondary education and 21% of women who have enrolled in or have completed college. Similarly, as women’s education increases, the likelihood that she will be included in the daily purchasing decisions increases. Of married women with only a primary education, 49% list the daily decisions as being made jointly while 59% of women with a secondary education and 69% of women with a university education list the daily decisions as being made jointly.

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Figure 7: Tajikistan (n=735) Who in your household decides what purchases are made to meet daily household needs like food, clothing and cleaning supplies? 80% 69% 59% 60% 49% 39% 36% 40% Spouse 21% Joint 20%

0% Primary Secondary University Respondent Education

Socio-Economic Standing

Educational attainment has an important impact on the socio-economic status of women within Central Asia. Women who are able to complete their education are more likely in every country to have a higher socio-economic status than their less educated counter-parts. Across all countries, 57% of women who attended only primary school were either middle or upper class while 43% were working or lower class. The number of middle and upper class women increases to 75% of women who attended secondary school, while the number of women who are working or lower class decreases slightly to 25%. The number of upper or middle class women increases even more dramatically among women who have enrolled in or completed a university education with 85% belonging to the middle or upper class and 15% belonging to the working or lower class. As the following chart will show, education’s effect on women’s socio-economic status is consistent among all of the countries included in this study. The comparisons are statistically significant with a p value of less than .05.

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Figure 8: Socio-Economic Status By Education and Country

100% 88% 89% 90% 83% 82% 80% 80% 75% 67% 67% 70% 62% 60% 55% Upper/Middle 50% 45% 38% Working/Lower 40% 33% 33% 30% 25% 18% 20% 20% 17% 12% 11% 10% 0% Tertiary Tertiary Tertiary Primary Primary Primary Secondary Secondary Secondary No Education No Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan

Conclusion

History has played a substantial role in the educational achievement levels of the women of Central Asia. Educational attainment available to women in these countries not only plays a vital role in their socio- economic conditions, employment and economic independence but also stands as an indicator of the progress and the level of economic development within each country. The data from the WIMC study demonstrates how the effect of educational achievement on women’s socio-economic success, economic independence and status within the household.

The history of Tajikistan has lowered the educational attainment levels of women compared to its neighboring countries. However, as with its neighbors, women in Tajikistan that have achieved higher levels of education show higher rates of employment, economic independence and decision making abilities within their household. More emphasis should be placed on increasing access to education to Tajik females as a means to promote economic empowerment in Tajikistan.

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More research should be conducted to determine the causative sources of women ceasing to pursue higher educational opportunities after secondary education in Tajikistan and determine why women in these countries choose or are forced to end their education. These are the issues that must be addressed and resolved before women who aspire to greater education as their path to happiness can pursue their dreams.

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Methodology

Kazakhstan

For Kazakhstan, a multi-stage, random selection of households, distributed proportionately to the national population, and a random selection of respondents is the method of choice for this survey. Interviews are completed in the homes of respondents. For the purpose of this survey, Kazakhstan was divided into six regions (Almaty, Northern, Central, Eastern, Southern, and Western) different from each other by geographic position and major economic, social and demographic characteristics. In each of the regions, areas representing the different key demographic, ethnic, and economic characteristics are selected. The number of interviews for each region was proportional to its population. The selection of localities in each territory was done as follows:

a) Urban: The sample includes all territorial centers and villages of the selected territories;

b) Rural: Villages were selected randomly from the list of all villages of the given oblast.

Table 1: Distribution of Interviews by Region and Urbanization

Region Total Percent Urban Percent Rural Percent 1. Almaty 176 8.8% 176 14.8% 0 0.0% 2. Northern 332 16.6% 180 15.1% 152 18.8% 3. Central 368 18.4% 286 24.0% 82 10.1% 4. Eastern 412 20.6% 192 16.1% 220 27.2% 5. Southern 444 22.2% 204 17.1% 240 29.7% 6. Western 268 13.4% 154 12.9% 114 14.1% TOTAL 2000 100% 1192 100% 808 100%

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Survey points were selected as follows: (1) every city was divided into three districts – central, ‘bedroom,’ and industrial; (2) every village was divided into two districts – the central and the outlying streets.

Random route sampling was used to select households. The regional supervisor defined the starting location in each survey point. Interviewers were instructed to attempt to conduct an interview with every fifth household in neighborhoods consisting of one and two story houses. In multi-storied buildings, the interviewer was to begin on the top floor of every second apartment building, choosing the apartment with the highest number, then skipping a floor, and choosing the next apartment the same way. In villages every third household was selected.

The “last birthday” method (to the date of the visit) was then followed to select a respondent, 18+ years of age. If the selected person was not available, the interviewer was to return there twice (in total, three visits).

Interviews were conducted in Russian and the Kazakh languages.

Kyrgyzstan

The sample in Kyrgyzstan is multi-staged and stratified by region, residence (town/village) and gender. According to the administrative and territorial division of Kyrgyzstan, the country is divided into eight regions (Chujskaja, Issyk-Kul’skaja, Narynskaja, Talasskaja, Oshskaja, Dzhalal- Abadskaja, Batkenskaja, and Bishkek). The sampling points are allocated proportionately to the country’s population.

Table 2: Distribution of Interviews by Region and Urbanization

Region Total Percent Urban Percent Rural Percent Bishkek 374 18.7% 374 48.7% 0 0.0% Chujskaja 321 16.1% 67 8.7% 254 20.6% Narynskaja 165 8.3% 49 6.4% 116 9.4% Issyk-Kul’skaja 94 4.7% 16 2.1% 78 6.3% Talassakaja 77 3.9% 14 1.8% 63 5.1% Oshskaja 473 23.7% 122 15.9% 351 28.5% Dzhalal-Abadskaja 344 17.2% 86 11.2% 258 20.9%

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Batkenskaja 152 7.6% 40 5.2% 112 9.1% TOTAL 2000 100% 767 100% 1233 100%

The number of interviews is determined for each region in proportion to the population. Each region is divided into urban and rural areas. The urban and rural population in every region is stratified by gender and age. Cities, towns, villages and rural localities are selected in proportion to the 18+ population with larger rural regions having an advantage over smaller regions. Closely located sampling points with a small share in the sample are combined into one, so that each sampling point could have at least ten respondents.

Random route sampling is used to select households. The regional supervisor defined the starting location in each survey point. Interviewers are instructed to attempt to conduct an interview at every fourth household.

The “closest birthday” method is then followed to select a respondent – the person whose birthday was closest to the date of the visit. Only household members who are citizens of Kyrgyzstan are selected. If the selected person is not available, the interviewer is to return there twice (in total, three visits).

Interviews were conducted in Kyrgyz and Russian.

Tajikistan

The nationally-representative sampling method is multi-stage and stratified by region and urbanization. The sampling is random for the selection of sampling points, households and respondents, though quotas are retained to avoid bias on key variables.

Tajikistan is divided into five regions (Dushanbe, Gorno-Badakhshanskaya autonomous oblast, Sodiyskaya/Leninabudskaya, Khatlonskaya, and the districts of the direct republican administration). Selection of city and village clusters was then selected proportionally to the urban and rural population. Rural localities were selected by lottery from the general list of villages in a given oblast. For each region, its proportion to the population determined the number of interviews.

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Table 3: Distribution of Interviews by Region and Urbanization

Region Total Percent Urban Percent Rural Percent 1. Dushanbe 200 10.0% 200 35.7% 0 0.0% 2. Gorno-Badakhshanskaya (GBA) 80 4.0% 20 3.6% 60 4.2% 3. Khatlonskaya 660 33.0% 180 32.1% 440 30.6% 4. Sodiyskaya/Leninabudshaya 620 31.0% 100 17.9% 560 38.9% 5. Districts of Direct Republican Administration 440 22.0% 60 10.7% 380 26.4% TOTAL 2000 100% 560 100% 1440 100%

All city centers in a region, regional centers, and capitals are included in the survey, as are town settlements, which are selected using the random numbers generator. Rural settlements are selected by lottery using the general list of villages in each region, which are selected using a random numbers generator.

Each city was divided into districts in accordance with boundaries of the network districts of the Municipal Electric Network. Using a lottery, the required number of areas is selected from the list of network areas in accordance with the size of population. There are 28 urban survey points. Villages are divided into two districts – the central and the outlying streets, with the number of interviews divided equally. The survey covers 72 rural survey points.

Random route sampling is used to select households. The regional supervisor determines the route starting point. Interviewers are instructed to attempt to conduct an interview with every third household in neighborhoods consisting of one and two story houses. In blocks of flats, interviewers are to conduct interviews at every fifth household.

In households where more than one family occupies the household, the appropriate family is chosen by listing the names of the heads of the family in alphabetical order. The respondent is chosen from the family that appears first in the list. The “closest birthday” method is then followed to select a respondent, linked to the quota. If the selected person is not available, the interviewer is to return there twice (in total, three visits).

Interviews were conducted in Tajik and Russian.

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Fieldwork

Fieldwork was conducted during the times and places shown in Table 4. Across the board, the pace of fieldwork and delivery was within contract specifications.

Table 4: Timelines for Fieldwork and Data Delivery

Country Sample Start End Duration Data Data Lag Size Field Field of field Rcvd 2 (Working Days)

Kazakhstan 2000 11/14 11/27 14 Days 12/13/07 2 Kyrgyzstan 2000 11/14 11/28 15 Days 12/17/07 4 Tajikistan 2000 11/14 11/28 15 Days 12/17/07 4 Average 2000 15 Days 3

Table 5: Composition of the Field Teams

Metric Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan Size of Field Team 97% 83 59 Percent Female 92% 67% 42% Percent Male 8% 33% 58% % New to These Polls 15% 67% 27%

Refusal Rate

Across all countries in this wave the average refusal rate was 25% (Table 6). The refusal rate is based on those who refused outright at the door; those who refused to participate for various reasons (including illness, drunkenness, or a household member not allowing the interview to take place) and those who broke off the interview (a very small share). This figure does not include the whole litany of non-contacts

2 This date is the day final, clean data were received by D3.

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(nobody home, respondent not home at the time interviewer was there, address not found, address is not a residence, unable to gain entrance because of code, no suitable respondent, etc.).

The former statistic (refusals) is more useful for political researchers as it speaks to public attitudes toward polling in general, the topics of this poll and their willingness to participate. The latter statistic (non-contacts) is relatively more important for field managers, as it speaks to the time and resources needed to complete fieldwork. Table 6: Refusal Rates by Country

Country Refused Completed Total Refusal Rate Breakoffs Eligible as a Percent Contacts of Refusals Col. A Col. B C = A+B D = (A/C)* 100 Kazakhstan 1407 2000 3407 41% 2% Kyrgyzstan 241 2000 2241 11% 0% Tajikistan 564 2000 2564 22% 4% Average 737 2000 2737 25% 2%

Data Processing

The first data files from each country arrived in a timely manner and generally within contract specifications. The data are weighted in all countries to adjust for minor statistical imbalances. While we recommend the use of the weight factor, it makes little difference in the results because the underlying samples are almost on target, and stable across waves.

Statistical weighting is a common procedure. The variables in all four countries are the same: gender, age and type of residence (urban/rural). The samples are designed to be representative of each country by region and urban/rural strata.

Quality Control Measures

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D3 and its suppliers apply a number of quality control measures at different points in the survey process.

We focus here on QC as it applies to fieldwork. In F2F field situations, most of the interviewers work independently, without direct supervision.

Table 9: Field Quality Control Measures by Country

Country % Back - During By Central checked Interview Supervisor Office Kazakhstan 35% 9% 17% 75% Kyrgyzstan 15% 0% 53% 47% Tajikistan 24% 17% 52% 31%

D3 also conducts an overall quality assessment for its in-person surveys. Survey results, coded by interviewers, were tested for a pattern of straight responses, substantive response bias – straights across respondents, non-response, and productivity. We include the results of these tests in a separate report on quality control of the field team.

The key advantages of this approach are that it:

• Is based on all of the work of all interviewers and their full body of work, • Is quantitative and replicable across waves and studies, and • It is comparative – it rigorously compares the performance of each interviewer against that of the team as a whole.

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Works Cited

BBC News. (2009, November 24). Amnesty: Nearly half of Tajik women 'regularly abused' . Retrieved December 18, 2009, from BBC News: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8375617.stm

Falkingham, J. (2000). Women and Gender Relations in Tajikistan. Asian Development Bank.

Hiro, D. (2009). Inside Central Asia; A Political and Cultural History of Uzbekistan Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgzstan, Tajikistan, Turkey and Iran. New York: Overlook Duckworth, Peter Mayer Publishers, Inc.

Newman, D. (2006, December 7). Tajik Girls Drop School to Marry . Retrieved February 16, 2010, from BBC World Service: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6207472.stm

UNESCO. (2009). UIS Statistics in Brief . Retrieved January 30, 2010, from UNESCO Institute for Statistics: http://stats.uis.unesco.org/unesco/TableViewer/document.aspx?ReportId=121&IF_Language=eng&BR_Co untry=7610

United Nations Development Programme. (2009). Overcoming Barriers: Human Mobility and Development. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

United Nations. (n.d.). International Human Development Indicators . Retrieved January 14, 2010, from Human Development Reports: http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/

Whitlock, M. (2003). Land Beyond the River: The Untold Story of Central Asia. Thomas Dunne Books.

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