Business

Chamber meets with IEA to resolve challenges, including tax issues

Published

2 years ago

February 9, 2022

(Last Updated On: February 9, 2022)

Afghanistan’s Chamber of Craftsmen and Shopkeepers (ACS) said Tuesday that they are facing several challenges in the country including the expectation of exorbitant taxes.

In a meeting with the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) and the ACS, the head of the chamber, Noorulhaq Omari called on the authorities to remove the challenges and work with investors and craftsmen to develop the sector.

Omari said if existing problems are not resolved, craftsmen will start evading tax and cease to operate in the country.

Other ACS members said that they cannot afford the taxes that have been imposed. They also urged the IEA to work with them to resolve their issues.

The Islamic Emirate, however, says that it has plans to sort out the problems – for small, medium and large businesses in the sector.

“The current tax [system], which has been in place for five years now, is not achievable in this current economic climate and will lead to tax evasion and a drop in activity,” said Omari.

Zabihullah Mujahid, the IEA’s spokesman, said substantial progress has been made in various fields in the last six months.

Mujahid said that all the energy used to end the war and the “occupation” by foreign troops will now be used “for the development of the country and the advancement of the economy and the country’s resources”.

Ministry of Finance officials meanwhile said they are looking at cutting tax for small businesses and craftsmen by more than 50 percent.

“We have offered you a discount of more than 50 percent. My request to you is not to count taxes as consumption. Tax is not consumption. This is an investment,” said Meraj Mohammad Meraj, Director General of Revenue of the Ministry of Finance.

The leadership of the Ministry of Economy also emphasized the need for people to support small businesses and craftsmen in the country.

“When there is no safe environment, people are worried, like you look at the last twenty years and the life that has passed,” said Sheikh Mohammad Khalid Hanafi, the Acting of the Ministry of Vice and Virtue of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.

According to the ACS, 40 percent of the craftsmen lost their jobs due to COVID-19 and the lack of support from the previous government.

Business

Pakistan: Consultations underway on preferential trade agreement with Afghanistan

Published

10 hours ago

May 11, 2024

Ariana News

(Last Updated On: May 11, 2024)

Pakistani officials have announced that consultations are underway with stakeholders on preferential trade agreements with Afghanistan and Azerbaijan.

According to Dawn newspaper, the issue was announced on Friday in a meeting on trade chaired by Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif.

In the meeting, the strict monitoring of Afghan Transit Trade was also emphasized.

Pakistani officials have not provided further details on preferential trade with Afghanistan and Azerbaijan.

Business

Talks with neighboring countries underway for fresh fruit exports: Azizi

Published

1 day ago

May 10, 2024

Ariana News

(Last Updated On: May 10, 2024)

Acting Minister of Industry and Commerce Nooruddin Azizi has said that talks with neighboring countries have started for the export of fresh fruit this year.

Azizi added that the Ministry of Industry and Commerce wants the country’s fresh fruit to be exported to Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Iran in addition to Pakistan.

Members of the private sector call on the Ministry of Industry and Commerce to step up efforts to find new markets for Afghan exporters.

“We ask the authorities to determine the export routes before the harvesting season. We should find new markets instead of Pakistan. There is capacity for Afghanistan’s exports in the region, and action should be taken in this regard,” said Mirwais Hajizada, the deputy of Chamber of Agriculture and Livestock.

Economic experts say that the Ministry of Industry and Commerce should hold talks with Iran and Uzbekistan in addition to Pakistan for Afghanistan’s exports.

“There are many opportunities to sell our products in markets other than Pakistan. I hope the authorities will think about this. Grounds should be paved to access the markets of South Asia and the Gulf countries through Iran, and the markets of Central Asia through Uzbekistan,” said Mohammad Nabi Afghan, an economic expert.

Members of the private sector say that although Pakistan is the closest and largest market for Afghanistan’s dry and fresh fruits, doing business with it has always been challenging.

Business

Pakistan, Uzbekistan reaffirm commitment over rail project

Published

2 days ago

May 9, 2024

Ariana News

(Last Updated On: May 9, 2024)

Pakistan and Uzbekistan on Wednesday reaffirmed their commitment to early implementation of the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan Railways project which will boost trade within the region.

In a statement issued by Pakistan’s foreign office after a meeting in Islamabad between visiting Foreign Minister of Uzbekistan Bakhtiyor Saidov and Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar, the project “would give boost to bilateral and regional trade and become a bridge between South and Central Asia.”

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also met with Saidov and emphasized the importance of the railway project and Pakistan’s commitment to its early completion.

Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan had in February 2021 agreed to build a railway line across Afghanistan to connect Central Asia with Pakistani ports at an estimated cost of $4.8bn.

The railway project, spanning 760 kms, is scheduled for completion by the end of 2027, with the capability to transport up to 15 million tonnes of goods annually by 2030.

This rail link will notably decrease cargo delivery time between Uzbekistan and Pakistan by around five days, while also slashing transportation costs by at least 40 percent.