Afghan transit trade: Resolving the bottleneck

Thousands of stranded containers resume onward journey.

Islamabad has finally released 10,000 Afghanistan bound containers stranded at Karachi ports for the past three months ostensibly under pressure from the US, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa traders and customs clearing agents said.

The agents told The Express Tribune that the Federal Board of Revenue withdrew the restrictions on the stranded goods trucks on Wednesday and allowed their shipment to Afghanistan through Torkham border .

The traders and customs agents, linked with the Afghan Transit Trade claimed that US diplomats in Islamabad had negotiated with Pakistan authorities the release of Afghan bound trucks held up at the Karachi port.

The President of Pak-Afghan Transit Trade Group Senior Vice President Abdul Hamid Gorwara further claimed that he had attended a meeting between FBR officials and the US ambassador in Islamabad few weeks ago on the issue.

He said that the shipment of Afghan goods trucks was slow as the NLC was not able to provide sufficient number of its vehicles to meet the requirements of the Afghan transit trade.

Meanwhile, the Afghan TV channel, Tolo news has confirmed on Wednesday that Pakistan has allowed the shipment of Afghan-bound containers stranded in Karachi port.

Around 586 Afghan containers are on the way to Afghanistan and around 400 containers are expected to be shipped each day from Karachi port, officials said on Tuesday.

Officials said if Pakistan lets shipment of 400 Afghan-bound containers each day, a total of 10,000 containers will reach Afghanistan in three weeks.

“The shipment has been started in Karachi. Yesterday around 200 containers were loaded and they are on the way,” Afghan Commerce and Industries Minister, Anwarulaq Ahadi, said.

But the Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Industries (ACCI) refused to trust pledges made by Pakistan.

“We don’t believe the commitments made by the Pakistan, Iranian and Uzbek private sector. They often do not stick to their pledges,” Deputy Head of ACCI Khan Jan Alokozai said. A joint committee has been set up to help resolve problems facing Afghan traders in Pakistan, officials said.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 4^th,  2011.