IEA to complete Afghan-Uzbek-Pak railway line

Afghanistan Railway Authority (ARA) officials said Thursday preliminary work on finishing the railway project between Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Pakistan (Mazar-i-Sharif-Kabul-Peshawar railway) has started.

Speaking at a news conference on Thursday in Kabul, ARA officials said that joint technical teams have started work and are half way through the initial phase.

“Inshallah we finish this project it may not only ensure the economy of Afghanistan but also guarantee the country’s security,” said Bakht Rehman Sharafat, General Director of the Afghanistan Railway Authority (ARA).

At the same time, ARA said that revenue from the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan railway line, which previously went to Uzbekistan, will now come to ARA.

“Afghanistan’s railway revenue was previously collected in Uzbekistan and then this country passed it on to Afghanistan but after the Islamic Emirate’s takeover we weren’t able to receive the revenue from Uzbekistan due to banking system crisis,” Sharafat said.

“Now, Afghanistan’s $12.5 million is with Uzbekistan which has not delivered it to the country yet.”

The railway line will connect the Trans-Corridor of Central Asia to Pakistan by the shortest route and will also provide an opportunity for South Asian countries to enter the markets of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Europe.

However, the railway administration has prioritized its plans and prioritized the projects where work is half finished or almost complete.

According to ARA, since the beginning of this year, more than three and a half million tons of goods have been transported using the existing line.