Afghanistan’s exports to Indian markets have doubled since  2016, officials of the Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Investment (ACCI) said on Tuesday. Afghan exports to Pakistani markets slightly increased during this period.
 
Meanwhile, a number of businessmen have said that Afghanistan’s exports have faced serious problems during the current year because of the closure of crossings with Pakistan following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
According to the ACCI, statistics show that last year Afghanistan exported $460 million worth of products to the Indian markets and India remained one of the largest markets for Afghanistan during this time. Afghan exports to the Pakistani markets during last year was around $298 million.
 
The business community called on the Afghan government to outline an effective strategy to help Afghan businessmen increase their exports to regional markets.
 
“Trade balance deduction has been a major issue and this trends still prevails, there is a need for practical programs to overcome this challenge,” said Sayed Zaman Hashemi, head of the ACCI.
 
The Afghan Ministry of Commerce and Industries calculated the overall volume of Afghanistan’s exports to world markets to be around $1 billion during  2019, but the Afghan business community insists that Afghan traders are still facing problems.
 
“All government institutions are playing the role of a source for achieving our targets, the main job in this sector is carried out by the private sector,” said Abdul Karim Malikyar, the acting Minister of Commerce and Industries.
 
“There are serious problems in the area of processing and packing, we are not able to undertake the processing based on the world demands,” said Sher Ali Khan Zadara, an Afghan businessman.
 
Afghan Minister of Economy Mustafa Mastoor says that the coronavirus has left a significant impact on the business in the country, but said that the Afghan government was working hard to settle down the problems facing the country’s business.
 
“We need to gather all views when it comes to achieving our economic growth targets, fighting poverty and reducing the implications that originated from the coronavirus,” said Mastoor.
 
After the outbreak of the COVID-19, the Afghan exports significantly decreased.
 
Experts say that Afghanistan’s exports abroad could be less than the figure it was last year.