Call to amend 2010 Afghan Transit Trade Agreement

PESHAWAR: The Pak-Afghan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry has asked the government to amend the 2010 Afghan Transit Trade Agreement after consulting the stakeholders.

The demand was made by a five members delegation of the chamber that met Director General Transit Trade, Imtiaz Ahmad Sheikh, during his visit to the Directorate of Trade Customs House here.

According to a press release issued, the delegation was led by the newly elected Vice- President of the chamber, Zia-ul-Haq Sarhadi. Director Transit Trade, Arbab Qaiser Hameed, Deputy Director, Ghulam Khan Border, Asfandyar, and Deputy Director, Torkhem Border, Amanat Khan were also present there.

The delegation members congratulated Imtiaz Ahmad Sheikh over his new responsibilities.They praised the services rendered by outgoing DG, Transit Trade, Raza Ahmad Khan, and former Director Trade, Amjad Rehman.

Both the officials, the delegation members added, during their one and a half years tenure worked a lot for resolution of the problems being faced by businessmen dealing in the Afghan Transit trade.

They played a pivotal role in the opening of the Ghulam Khan border for the Pak-Afghan trade, the delegation members explained.The delegation told the DG Transit Trade that the 1965 Trade Agreement had remained in vogue for around 45 years and there were nominal complaints about it.

However, they added, the Pak-Afghan Transit Trade Agreement signed in 2010 had a lot of lacunae as a result of which 70 per cent of transit trade business had been shifted from Karachi port to Chabahar port in Iran, adding amendments to the 2010 Afghan Transit Trade Agreement were needed.

They said the Customs duty for Pakistani goods was charged as Rs 200,000 and for Afghan goods, it was Rs 600,000 which needed a review.They complained that Customs staff in Karachi after clearance of goods through scanning held it for the examination which was a violation of the rules.

The delegation members said at the Torkham border the Customs Department had provided all kinds of facilities to traders, but in Afghanistan presently hundreds of empty containers had been held which needed to be released. DG Transit and Trade, Imtiaz Ahmad Sheikh, pledged to resolve all these issues on a priority basis.