Business
Misunderstanding of Afghanistan sanctions crippling local businesses: NRC report
Over-compliance and misconceptions about the scope of international sanctions have led to severe obstacles for the Afghan business community, including for businesses that import and export food and other essential goods, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) said in a report released Wednesday.
The report calls on the international community to improve awareness about sanctions and reduce over-compliance. It argues that concrete steps must be taken to address the crippled Afghan economy and ongoing unprecedented humanitarian crisis.
“Humanitarian aid alone cannot meet the needs of the millions of Afghans who have lost their jobs and been forced to take on huge debts and sell their possessions just to be able to buy food needed for survival,” said Neil Turner, NRC’s country director in Afghanistan. “We must reverse this devastating economic disaster. A stable economy, thriving private sector, and the reintroduction of development programmes are important to complement the work of humanitarian organizations.”
Since the Islamic Emirate returned to power in 2021, international actors have pursued political and economic isolation policies towards Afghanistan. More than 28 million people are now on the brink of survival, according to the report.
NRC said that there are comprehensive exemptions to the sanctions that should enable the transfer of money in and out of Afghanistan for activities designed to address the basic needs of the population, but banks continue to restrict businesses’ access to financial services despite the exemptions in place. Afghan businesses highlighted that payment instructions for any international bank transaction that mention Afghanistan get blocked, even for transactions for food shipments via the United Nations.
“We need to educate overseas companies and banks that Afghanistan itself is not under sanctions. There is a real lack of understanding about this – particularly among key sectors in our main export and import markets,” said an executive of a large agricultural firm in Afghanistan.
To address the complex political, economic, and social changes since IEA’s return to power, NRC called on major governments, financial institutions, UN agencies and relevant regional actors to urgently convene to establish measures to stabilize and support Afghanistan’s economy for the benefit of all the Afghan people.
“Concrete steps must be agreed to address the barriers faced by critical private sector actors in Afghanistan, including challenges in accessing financial services. On top of this, it’s vital that mechanisms are stepped-up to provide technical assistance to the Afghanistan Central Bank to support its resumption of core functions that are critical to support the Afghan economy, private sector actors, and ultimately the Afghan people who have already endured so much,” added Turner.
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.
Afghanistan and Pakistan have agreed on the issuance of a temporary admission document for transporters of commercial goods, Afghanistan’s Ministry of Transport and Aviation announced on Sunday.
The ministry said in an announcement that truck drivers and their assistants carrying commercial goods from Afghanistan and Pakistan must have this document with them at the crossings.
Based on the announcement, the document will be issued to Afghans at the Pakistani embassy in Kabul and its consulate in Kandahar.
For Pakistanis, the document is distributed at the office of the Afghanistan transport attaché in Peshawar and Quetta.
The Ministry of Transportation and Aviation asked owners and drivers of trucks to submit the required documents to their respective transportation companies by June 1.
The ministry warned that after June 1, trucks cannot travel between the two countries without having the temporary admission document.
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