ACCI: Insecurity on Highways Adversely Affecting Trade at Chah Bahar Port

KABUL: (MEP) – The Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries (ACCI) on Tuesday expressing concerns over growing insecurity on the Kabul-Kandahar and Nimruz highways said that trade at the Chah Bahar Port has been adversely affected due to increased insurgents’ and Illegal Armed Groups’ (IAGs) activities on these highways, Tolo reported.

Mohammad Qurban Haqjo, the head of the ACCI, urged the government to provide security on the highways and help restore trade. Mr. Haqjo mentioned that trading from the Chah Bahar Port will hugely benefit the country because of its low operational cost compared to the Karachi Port.

The ACCI officials said that the insurgents continue to torch the oil tankers and other goods carriages plying on these highways, resulting in heavy losses every day.

“Majority of the fresh and dry fruits from the northern and north-eastern parts of the country are transported via these highways. The insurgents frequently burn down the trucks. If this continues, the prices of goods will increase and delay exports, hurting the traders,” said Mr. Haqjo.

The Chah Bahar Port is located near the south-western part of Afghanistan, making transportation of goods easy and cheaper for the Northern provinces.

According to the ACCI officials, the Chah Bahar Port is of prime importance because heavy machines, construction materials, chemical fertilizers, plastic materials and food products are imported from the Chah Bahar Port. The ACCI added that it will soon prepare a plan to start exporting carpets, precious stones and herbal products from the port.

Afghanistan, a landlocked country, is currently restricted to shipping goods to sea ports via Pakistan, which imposes severe restrictions that cost trader’s considerable time and money. Therefore, the help Iran has offered the Afghan government in expanding the port and making it more accessible to Afghanistan is considered both an immense economic opportunity as well as a strong showing of diplomatic good-will.

The Chah Bahar Port is expected to cut down the import and export costs of Afghanistan, India and Iran, as well as strengthen diplomatic ties between them.