Tajikistan: Civil Service and Public Administration Reforms in the Years of Independence

This chapter describes the various initiatives undertaken in Tajikistan for the establishment and further development of the institution of civil service in the country. In this context, in order to accelerate the development of a professional civil service that would play the role of an effective connection between the state and society, the Civil Service Law was enacted in 2007 that led to the creation of the Civil Service Department under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan. This has been an important step, as the Civil Service Department has since pursued a unified state policy for the civil service. Eventually, the Department was transformed into the Civil Service Agency under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan to further enhance its role in the field of civil service development. Furthermore, the Strategy for Reforming the Public Administration system, adopted by Presidential Decree, determined the Government’s actions in public administration and civil service reform, and it aimed at improving the structure of central and local executive bodies of state power. Two more documents, the Concept for Civil Service Reform and the Programme for Reforming the Civil Service of Tajikistan also influenced the course of civil service reform in the country. The first, by outlining a set of measures aimed at creating a modern and professional civil service, in the short-, medium-, and long-term; and the second by ensuring consistent implementation of the Concept and by increasing the efficiency of civil service development. The formation of solid constitutional foundations for the civil service in Tajikistan, as the most important mechanism of public administration demonstrates that no democratic state can function effectively without a highly professional state apparatus consisting of a competent civil service corps.