Muskie [3]alumna Manzura Makhkamova of Tajikistan was recently appointed to serve as Deputy Chair of the State Committee for Investments and State Property Management. Makhkamova now leads government initiatives aimed at further developing entrepreneurship in Tajikistan. Her responsibilities include promoting reforms to encourage the development of small- and medium-sized businesses, drafting relevant state policy regulations, monitoring national business programs, and supervising the Division for Support of Entrepreneurship, a group of 21 staff spread throughout the country.
As a 2003 Muskie participant in the Master of Public Administration program at Binghamton University [4], Makhkamova studied principles of public service, financial management, and evidence-based decision making. After returning to Tajikistan, Makhkamova led her own consulting firm before becoming Economic Advisor to the President of Tajikistan, a position that she held until her appointment to the State Committee for Investments and State Property Management. Reflecting on her new role, Makhkamova said that she aims to “pay special attention to the development of women’s businesses as well as coordination of better public-private dialogue and partnership.”
The Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program [3] is a program of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs [5] of the U.S. Department of State and is implemented by IREX.