Landlocked and mountainous, Tajikistan has a young-and mostly rural-population of about 8.7 million and GNI per capita of USD 1,100 in 2016, making it a lower middle-income country. In 2016, Tajikistan launched the National Development Strategy of the Republic of Tajikistan for the Period Up To 2030 ("NDS 2030") laying out its master plan of the country's future economic development. This systematic country diagnostic ("SCD") identifies the most critical challenges and opportunities facing Tajikistan as its strives to raise the population's living standards through the implementation of NDS 2030. Specifically, the SCD will answer the following three questions: (i) what are the key constraints to achieving inclusive and sustainable growth as envisaged in the NDS 2030
(ii) what are the main risks
and (iii) what priority areas can Tajikistan focus on to have the largest impact on sustainable economic and social development?