By: Ahmad Sahil
According to Ministry of Industry and Commerce; almost 8,000 containers of Afghan traders have been delayed due to the closure of transit routes by Pakistan. Traders say that 4,000 more empty containers are also waiting to be shipped. While every political issue is raised with the neighboring country Pakistan, they are forced to close the border by which traders of both countries are affected. Most of the Afghan traders received losses in closing the routes of Torkham.
Over the past few months, Afghanistan’s dry and fresh fruits export have been hit hard by Pakistani Government, and our farmers and traders have suffered huge losses across the country due to shut-down of the borders. Afghan fruits are known as one of the best and most well-known fruits in the world. But for the past few decades, our traders have been exporting this dry and fresh fruit to Pakistan, but the value of our dry and fresh fruits is not seen as much in Pakistan as comparing in other countries. What could be the reason? The reason was clear. There was no opportunity for these traders to export these dry and fresh fruits to Asian Countries. If we remember, when former President Ghani won the election in 2014 and took over the administration, his first speech to the nation was he would start diplomatic and economic relations from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and China. This speech surprised the nation and world.
But with the passage of time, this has been proven to the nation and world in practical terms. Before 2014, at the beginning of the government, When the era of the former president came, it changed its economic course early on and freed Afghanistan from economic blockade. When the Taliban came to power, they initially increased trade with Pakistan. On several occasions when political relations between the two countries have been strained, Pakistan has always focused on Afghanistan’s economic side. They have oppressed the farmers and traders of Afghanistan. They have closed the Torkham border for several times for their own political goals and interests, to harm Afghanistan’s exports and traders.
But fortunately, Afghanistan’s old plans and policies are still being used by the Taliban Administration. The Taliban regime has also started exporting its Afghan dry and fresh fruits to Russia, Uzbekistan, China, and Tajikistan. This is a very good roadmap for Afghanistan’s economy growth. This economic strategy has meant that no matter how much Pakistan puts pressure on Afghanistan and closes the borders, it has no visible impact on Afghanistan, such as we are witnessing. As before, no commodity is rising in price inside Afghanistan.
Switching economic paths are a necessary step for Afghanistan’s economic survival and strength, which has been considered a good alternative in the past. Considering this innovation, if any system changes now, this innovation will remain forever. We appreciate this action of these alternative paths for the survival and maintenance of Afghanistan’s economy.
The benefits of switching these routes for Afghanistan could be that, on the one hand, it would strengthen Afghan farmers and traders. On the other hand, if we look at our previous calculations, these fruits can now be sold at a much higher price in Asian markets.
Because if we compare the Russian ruble with the Pakistani rupee, we get a lot of value. This amount can encourage both our traders and farmers to work hard and to earn high amount.
The writer name is Ahmad Sahil, He worked with Afghan Samoon Civil Society, and He also worked as an Admin & Finance Specialist at High Peace Council. He is an active writer on Socio-economic and Political Affairs. He hold Diploma in International Affairs and Diplomacy from Indian Institute of Governance & Leadership.
About the Author
