It is 8am in Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan. Zafar, 39, is walking down the street to the Tajik National University, where he earns 300 USD a month as a teaching instructor. He and his wife, a school teacher who earns even less, are the only bread-winners for their family of six.
Instead of walking, Ahliddin, 44, rides a black Lexus to his office in the city centre. A father of five, Ahliddin is the CEO of a construction company, and the sole bread-winner in his family. But with a monthly salary of 5,000 USD, he can cover his children’s private secondary and university education. “Thank God I have good living conditions. My two sons are studying at good universities abroad, while the other three kids are in prestigious schools,” he tells oDR.
Ayan’s life in Nur Sultan, the capital of Kazakhstan, feels like miles away, literally and figuratively. A graduate of Nazarbayev University, five years ago the 26-year-old businessman created an app for delivering healthy food. It made him a millionaire. In 2019, the annual turnover for Ayan’s company was more than a million USD. “I mostly spend my funds on investment projects,” Ayan says proudly. “My monthly expenses are about 1,200-1,500 USD, and I also pay my parents 2,300 USD each as they work for me.”
