The High Board of Afghan Entrepreneurs said Pakistan on Saturday allowed Afghan lorry carrying cotton to enter to the country.
Rahimuddin Haji Agha, head of the board, said on Saturday that the problem was resolved after long discussions between Afghan and Pakistani sides.
According to Haji Agha, because of Pakistani ban 150 lorry vehicles laden with cotton have been stuck for 35 days.
He said the ban resulted in closure of 40 factories which left around 3,000 people unemployed, adding that with leaving the ban those factories will resume operation.
This comes as the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Pakistan cabinet on Thursday approved import of cotton from Afghanistan and central Asian states via the land route to meet its shortfall in the key textile industry.
The ECC took the decision in line with a proposal submitted by the country’s ministry of commerce and textile during a meeting presided over by the Finance Minister Asad Umar. The meeting, however, allowed the import via Torkham border with the condition that imported cotton should meet the sanitary and phytosanitary regulations.
“ECC also directed the relevant ministries to engage with the industry for establishment of a permanent quarantine facility for cotton imported through land route,” the Pakistan finance ministry said in a statement.
Pakistan is a net cotton importer with the textile industry consuming 12 to 15 million bales per annum. The country imports cotton from various sources. Afghanistan and central Asian states are producers and exporters of cotton and they have reasonable share in Pakistan’s import mix as imports from these countries are cheap due to land route compared to the United States and other destinations.
