Uzbekistan’s Transport Minister, Ilham Muhammadov, announced that construction of the long-awaited Afghan-Trans railway will commence in 2025.
This ambitious 573-kilometer project aims to connect Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and Pakistan, enhancing trade and transportation routes between Central Asia, South Asia, and beyond.
The Afghan-Trans railway will include an expansion of an 80-kilometer section designed to facilitate access to Pakistani and Iranian ports through Afghanistan.
The Islamic Emirate expressed its commitment to the project in August 2021, with an exploration team conducting route assessments and feasibility studies throughout 2022.
According to Uzbekistan’s main transport and infrastructure design institute, the estimated construction cost of the railway is approximately $4.6 billion.
Once completed, the railway is projected to have the capacity to transport up to 20 million tons of commercial goods annually. This crucial transport corridor is expected to strengthen connections between Europe, Russia, Central Asia, and South Asia, making it easier and more cost-effective for Afghanistan to access regional and global markets.
