Transit traders from Afghanistan and Pakistan cited complicated regulations, slow goods clearing process and border terminal procedures, as the main culprits of declining bilateral trade volume.

“Paying no heed toward resolution of issues of the business community on both sides of the border is not in the interest of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Regulatory duties, unnecessary and double taxation should be revised,” the Pak-Afghan traders said.

The participants called upon both Afghan and Pakistani governments to make efforts to remove the hurdles in the way of potential bilateral trade necessary to meet the mutual trade target of $5 billion.

The conference was organized by U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) funded Pakistan Regional Economic Integration Activity (PREIA) in collaboration with the Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI).

The Pak-Afghan traders also talked about the extremely slow clearance process of goods at the four shared border crossings at Torkham, Chaman, Ghulam Khan and Kharlachi.

Over the past week, truckers had also complained of corruption in Pakistan and harassment by the police and transport unions before crossing the Torkham border gate.