Authorities from Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to initiate coordinated efforts to increase the volume of bilateral trade. The agreement was reached in principle during a meeting of the Afghan Consul General, Hafiz Mohibullah Shakir and a Pak-Afghan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PAJCCI) delegation. The PAJCCI delegation was headed by its Director, Zia-ul-Haq Sarhadi. It included importers, exporters, customs agents and leading businessmen from Karachi. The meeting was attended by the Admin Consulate General, Mufti Noorullah; Commercial Attache, Waheedullah Himmat and Deputy Commercial Attache, Dr Hameedullah Fazal Khel, from the Afghan side.

During the meeting, Director PAJCCI, Zia ul Haq Sarhadi, said that businessmen and traders were facing a lot of problems on both sides of the border and that these problems need to be resolved on priority basis so that trade can resume to its full potential. He said that containers were being restricted in the Khowar Maidan area of Afghanistan, and that problems were also being faced by businessmen related to the Afghan document Ilam-o-Nazar in Peshawar. All the participants of the meeting were given a chance to air their views and suggest solutions.

The Afghan Consulate officials enumerated the problems faced by Afghan businessmen in Pakistan. They said that the problems ranged from unregistered checking points near Torkhem border, harassment of Afghan drivers, to non-implementation of FBR’s directives. They said that late reloading of Afghan goods in local trucks resulted in the undue levying of detention charges on Afghan businessmen. The participants collectively agreed that, “the volume of Pak-Afghan trade is very low, which is not suitable for both the countries and is affecting thousands of people on both sides of the border.”

The meeting stressed the need for the development of a road map to improve bilateral relations between the two countries. They said that improvement in bilateral relations will help improve trade relations between the two countries. Afghan officials also impressed upon the government of Pakistan to undertake initiatives to improve trade relations with Afghanistan as it did with the Central Asian countries. The meeting concluded on a good note with felicitations from both sides on the resumption of normal trade activities and diplomatic correspondences.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk