Last Tuesday, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce claimed that Afghanistan’s export volume has increased by 32 percent in the first eight months of this year compared to the same period in 2017.

Acting Minister of Industry and Commerce Ajmal Hamid Abdul Rahimzai said the expansion of trade routes was a key element behind the increase. Soon, Afghanistan’s export items will be sent through the Lapis Lazuli trade corridor.

“Fortunately, alternative routes are available for Afghanistan right now and the routes have left significant impact on our exports,” said Abdul Rahimzai. The acting minister did not respond to questions on increasing/decreasing imports.

Meanwhile, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has said that foreign investments have significantly declined in the country and that there is insufficient infrastructure to use the Lapis Lazuli route for commerce purposes.

Although the government noted a $169 million increase in Afghanistan’s export volume last year, this increase did not fix Afghanistan’s balance deficit of more than 90 percent.

The Lapis Lazuli Route

The Lapis Lazuli Corridor agreement was signed by Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey last year in November.

The corridor will start in Aqina (in the Faryab province) and Torghandi (in the western Herat province) and will run through to Turkmenbashi in Turkmenistan. From there it will cross the Caspian Sea, linking the Azerbaijani capital Baku to Tbilisi and Georgia’s Black Sea ports of Batumi and Poti. It will then connect with Kars in eastern Turkey before linking to Istanbul and Europe.

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