Afghanistan, Kazakhstan sign $133 million trade agreements to boost food imports

Afghanistan and Kazakhstan have signed trade agreements worth more than $133 million aimed at strengthening economic ties and ensuring a steady supply of food commodities to Afghanistan, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce announced Wednesday.

The deals, reached during a trade meeting in Kabul between Kazakhstan’s National Food Contract Corporation and Afghan private sector representatives, will see nearly 600,000 metric tons of basic goods—including flour, wheat, and oilseeds such as flaxseed and soybeans—imported from Kazakhstan.

Speaking at the event, Afghanistan’s Acting Minister of Industry and Commerce Nooruddin Azizi highlighted the importance of the agreements, stressing that both countries have “significant and complementary economic potential.”

He said the ministry is working to raise the volume of bilateral trade to $3 billion while ensuring greater support for traders and investors.

The ministry described the signing as a practical step toward expanding cooperation, boosting trade flows, and opening opportunities for joint investment.

Officials noted that the agreements mark a new chapter in Afghanistan–Kazakhstan relations and could help improve livelihoods while contributing to long-term growth.

The push to expand trade is part of a wider economic strategy by the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, which has increasingly focused on boosting regional commerce as a way to stabilize the country’s fragile economy.

With Afghanistan still facing banking restrictions, limited access to international financing, and reduced foreign aid, the authorities have turned to trade and transit agreements with regional partners—including Uzbekistan, Iran, and now Kazakhstan—as a key means of driving growth, creating jobs, and reducing dependency on humanitarian support.