| Tajikistan is a mountainous landlocked country in | | | | Silk Road region. |
| Central Asia. It borders Afghanistan to the south, | | | | The Yaghnobi people live in mountainous areas of |
| Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and | | | | northern Tajikistan. The estimated number of |
| China to the east. Most of Tajikistans population | | | | Yagnobians is now about 250,000. Forced migrations |
| belongs to the Tajik ethnic group, who share culture | | | | have decimated their numbers. They speak the |
| and history with the Iranian peoples and Uzbek people | | | | Yaghnobi language, which has its roots in the Sogdian |
| and speak the Tajik language. | | | | language. |
| Tajikistan International Airlines has weekly flights from | | | | Tajikistans economy was shattered by the 1992 to97 |
| Karachi, Delhi and Munich to Dushanbe. Aeroflot flies | | | | civil war, but is slowly recovering. |
| between Moscow and Dushanbe a few times a | | | | The border with Afghanistan is considered risky for |
| week. There are also irregular charter connections | | | | travellers, as are the mined areas bordering |
| from Dushanbe to Aleppo and Abu Dhabi. Theres a | | | | Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. |
| railway route from Moscow through Kazakstan and | | | | Despite steady economic growth since the war ended, |
| Uzbekistan with a branch line from Tashkent to | | | | the per capita GDP is still lower than any of the other |
| Dushanbe or Khojand. Daily buses connect Dushanbe | | | | former Soviet republics. Tajikistans most important |
| with Tashkent and Samarkand. | | | | commodities are cotton and aluminium, the latter |
| Visas are not issued at the airport, nor at Tajikistans | | | | accounting for 45 percent of the countrys export |
| border crossings. Border controls are rare but there | | | | production. The hydropower potential is also significant. |
| are frequent internal checkpoints, and if you intend | | | | Mineral resources are varied such as gold, silver, |
| moving outside Dushanbe you must have impeccable | | | | uranium, tungsten but limited in amount. |
| documents. | | | | Tajikistans healthcare facilities are often very basic, |
| Tajikistan is a patchwork of self contained valleys and | | | | especially in remote parts of the countries. Travellers |
| regional contrasts forged together by Soviet nation | | | | should assess the risks and take appropriate |
| building and shared pride in a Persian cultural heritage | | | | precautions before and during their stay. |
| that is claimed as the oldest and most influential in the | | | | |