Business
Kabul working with UAE to digitize customs ports
Afghanistan has sought the UAE’s help to digitize its logistics infrastructure in order to facilitate regional trade in its push to become a bridge between South and Central Asia and the Gulf.
According to Emirates News Agency (WAM), Afghan Ambassador to the UAE Javid Ahmad said in an interview Afghanistan has a “planned large-scale programme on digitalisation with the UAE, which would involve digitalisation of our trade and logistics infrastructure.”
He said Afghanistan is in talks with a UAE firm to look into the schematics of the country’s dry ports and customs ports to see how they can mainstream the customs revenue collection, WAM reported.
“That’s very important for us, because an estimated 46 percent of our government revenues come from customs but the current system allows some loopholes for leakages, waste and misallocations,” Ahmad said.
“We believe that if we want Afghanistan to be the land bridge between South and Central Asia, regional connectivity is important, especially as part of our own plan for economic growth,” he said.
Afghanistan wants to extend its connectivity beyond South and Central Asia towards Arabian Gulf, particularly the UAE, through Port Qasim in Karachi, Pakistan and Chabahar Port in south-eastern Iran, he explained.
“We need to get logistics revamped and we are engaged with the UAE firm to see whether they could come and study to completely reform and restructure it, which would also include technology transfer,” Ahmad told WAM.
He said Afghanistan realises the future is digital and said government was also working with the UAE to create a unified communication infrastructure network, especially for key government institutions. “That includes important technological support, for example, on data integration systems. We are engaging with the UAE on this and it is a flagship project,” he said.
Ahmad also revealed that efforts are underway to establish a joint UAE-Afghanistan Business Council.
He said other priority sectors included the bilateral economic agenda, agriculture and aviation sectors.
The aviation sector is important “especially because the UAE’s three-company consortium is already managing four of our international airports. So now we’re looking to see how in the aviation sector UAE’s engagement could deepen to include, for example, building a passenger terminal, building a cargo terminal, as well as establishing a logistical and food processing zone,” the envoy explained.
The National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA) said on Wednesday that last year, the value of exports totaled $1.79 billion while imports totaled $8.57 billion.
According to NSIA, fruits accounted for the largest share of export items last year, totaling over $645 million.
Medicinal plants, minerals and vegetables were the next top three items respectively to be exported.
Meanwhile, petroleum and oil accounted for the largest portion of imported goods, totaling over $1.37 billion.
Another large portion of the total amount imported went to machinery, vehicles and parts. This totaled over $1.15 billion, followed by textiles, metals and metal products.
Nooruddin Azizi, Acting Minister of Industry and Commerce, headed to Russia to participate in an international economic meeting in Kazan, Tatarstan.
The aim of the Russia-Islamic World: KazanForum 2024, the 15th edition of the forum, is to offer a platform for leading international economic and financial specialists from the Islamic world to strengthen ties between the countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the regions of the Russian Federation in the economic, educational, social and cultural spheres, Anadolu Agency reported.
The Ministry of Industry and Commerce said that Azizi, leading a high-level delegation of the Islamic Emriate, traveled to Tatarstan at the invitation of Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov.
The forum is held between May 14 and 19.
The forum also aims to promote the development of Islamic financial institutions in Russia and worldwide, with a focus on joint international projects and programs, according to Anadolu Agency.
More than 80 nations are expected to participate in the event, including representatives of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Malaysia, Türkiye, Iran, Libya, and other OIC member states.
Deputy Prime Minister for Administrative Affairs Abdul Salam Hanafi says Afghanistan has the potential to become one of the most important industrial centers in the region.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the national and international expo on the occasion of Industry Week, Hanafi said that the growth of industry lays the foundation for the growth of other economic sectors and that the Islamic Emirate fully supports domestic production in the country.
“Afghanistan has important and rich factors for industrial production, which can become one of the important industrial centers in the region. The growth of industry will be the basis for the growth of other economic sectors, especially agriculture,” said Hanafi.
Acting Minister of Industry and Commerce, Nooruddin Azizi, added that the IEA has programs in the fields of industry development and support for the private sector that will make Afghanistan self-sufficient.
Azizi stated that Afghanistan’s industrial sector is currently progressing and the quality of export goods has also improved.
Some investors said at the ceremony that after the return of the IEA, the country’s exports have increased and the number of manufacturing companies has also increased.
This expo is open to visitors for seven days, and industrial products are showcased in 450 booths.
Women in business also attended the meeting.
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