Business
Afghanistan exports hundreds of tons of white paper to Central Asia
Afghanistan exported hundreds of tons of domestically produced white paper to Central Asian countries this month, officials said on Saturday.
The Chamber of Industries and Mines said that Afghanistan is capable of producing any type of paper.
According to the chamber, Afghanistan needs 15,000 tons of white paper annually, but the level of domestic production is four times the country’s needs. Hence, the country’s industrialists have started exporting to the markets of Central Asian countries according to the global standards.
“We call on the Islamic Emirate to provide us with durable materials and electricity for domestic production and also to prevent the smuggling of goods to Afghanistan,” said Sherbaz Kaminzada, CEO of Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries.
Members of the private sector also call on the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) to prevent paper imports in order to support domestic production.
Meanwhile, the Afghan Ministry of Finance assured the private sector officials that it is committed to enhancing domestic production and to remove all the barriers for domestic production.
“The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) strives to create all the facilities for the expansion of domestic production. We are also trying to create facilities in the sphere of regulation,” said Ahmad Wali Haqmal, the ministry spokesman.
Economists also say that boosting domestic production could save Afghanistan from poverty and economic crisis, adding it would also create job opportunities and increase the country’s revenues.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry said Thursday it has signed cooperation agreements with ten institutions to support the development of small and medium-sized enterprises.
Nooruddin Azizi, Acting Minister of Commerce and Industry, said: “In the implementation of projects, we must pay special attention to our activities and actions and try to make useful use of the projects according to the requirements and benefit the beneficiaries.”
These ten institutions are to present their projects, the total value of which is around over $1.1 million. The projects will be carried out in Kabul, Baghlan, Ghor, Herat, Logar, Nangarhar, Balkh, Badakhshan and Jawzjan provinces and provide direct jobs for about 1,000.
To date, the ministry has signed MoUs for 72 projects in total, collectively valued at about $53.6 million.
These agreements have been signed with domestic and foreign companies for the establishment of small and medium-sized businesses.
In accordance with the principles and laws of the Islamic Emirate and prioritizing the implementation of projects for immigrants and returnees and internally displaced people, the ministry said 635,865 people will benefit through jobs directly and over 4.3 million will benefit indirectly in 25 provinces once these projects are implemented.
The National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA) confirmed Tuesday that in the last month of solar year 1402, (March 2024) Afghanistan’s exports totaled $141.1 million and imports totaled $789.6 million.
This was down from $174 million for exports in the same period in 1401. However, imports increased by $99.2 million in 1402, up from $690.4 million.
Most exports in the last month of 1402 went to Pakistan, India and the United Arab Emirates, while in the last month of 1401 exports went to Pakistan, India and China.
The Ministry of Interior said the governor of Herat province Islam Jar met with Alim Khan Yasin Gildaye, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Afghanistan, to discuss various issues around trade.
According to the ministry, the two sides discussed the expansion of trade facilities, increasing the volume of trade exchanges between traders of the two countries, reducing customs tariffs, solving the challenges of traders and issuing visas to them.
The Afghanistan-Kazakhstan Chamber of Commerce has been opened in Herat in order to facilitate and increase trade between the two countries.
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