ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — The Pakistani government has started implementing a plan to allow Afghan transporters to enter Pakistan using Temporary Entry Permits (TADs) to boost bilateral trade between the two countries, according to Pakistani media reports.
Dawn reported that Pakistan-Afghanistan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PAJCCI) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial coordinator Ziaul Haq Sarhadi confirmed that the first Afghan vehicle fitted with a TAD had cleared customs at the Karlachi border crossing in Kurram tribal district. He noted that the Pakistani embassy in Kabul had issued the TADs to Afghan drivers and cleaners.
Similarly, the Afghan consulate in Peshawar will also issue the same documents to Pakistani transporters, Dawn reported citing Taliban consul general Hafiz Mohibullah, who said Taliban officials in Kabul had visited the consulate to facilitate the issuance of TADs to Pakistani transporters.
Sarhadi called the initiative “good news for bilateral trade,” but noted that transport companies involved in the movement of goods are not included in the TAD system.
In March, Pakistan and the Taliban agreed to introduce TAD for trade vehicle drivers during talks in Kabul. A Taliban consul noted that cargo vehicles from both countries can now travel to any city in Pakistan or Afghanistan. The initiative was formulated during Pakistan’s former Commerce Secretary Mohammad Qur’am Agha’s visit to Afghanistan from March 24 to 27, where he discussed bilateral trade and transportation with Taliban Commerce Secretary Nooruddin Azizi.
