Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ICCI) has called upon the Pak-Afghan Governments to work for harmonizing the duty and tariff structures of Pakistan and Afghanistan before signing of the new Pak-Afghan Transit Trade Agreement (ATTA) to discourage smuggling.

Chairing a meeting of a delegation of local goods transporters, ICCI President Zahid Maqbool stressed that opening of a Letter of Credit, particularly of sensitive/smuggling-prone goods should be made mandatory for Afghan importers through Afghan banks to check the back-smuggling of transit goods to Pakistan. He said no foreign pressure, detrimental to the interests of Pakistan, should be entertained during negotiations of new ATTA.

He showed deep concern over the import of a large amount of raw materials and luxury goods to Afghanistan which the Afghan economy cannot absorb in its present condition. He feared that these goods will ultimately filter back into Pakistan hurting domestic manufactures and legal importers. He demanded of the government to take stern measures to stop the black market of transit goods to protect country’s own industry.

The transporters expressed reservations over the clauses trying to allow Indian transport companies for transportation of goods via Wagah Border and the transportation of Afghanistan bound goods through Afghan trucks from Karachi Sea Port to Kabul ignoring Pakistani interests. They demanded that only Pakistani goods carriers should be allowed to transport goods under ATTA from Karachi to Torkham and no foreign company should be permitted to carry these goods inside Pakistan.

Zahid Maqbool said that the present ATTA signed in 1965 is highly one sided giving undue favor to Afghan traders and called upon the government to remove such anomalies from new ATTA to make it a balanced one for both countries.

He also asked the Afghan government to take necessary measures to check unauthorized trade of goods between the two countries.  He said both countries should develop a joint mechanism to check smuggling under the ATTA by imposing quantitative restrictions on the transit goods on the basis of actual consumption in Afghanistan.

ICCI President said presently the volume of many items exported to Afghanistan under ATTA is much higher as compared to the actual consumption and opined that sharing data of actual consumption items by Afghanistan with Pakistan could help in mitigating the menace of smuggling.