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Lankan-Afghan FTA to be signed in near future

Lankan-Afghan FTA to be signed in near future

Charge’d affairs at the Embassy of Afghanistan to Sri Lanka, Munir Ghisy says Afghanistan have already received the approved draft agreement from the Afghan government and are looking forward to sign the agreement with the Sri Lankan government.
He said so speaking at a discussion to promote bilateral trade relations between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan at the National Chamber of Commerce in Colombo.
He went on to explain the advantageous of setting-up direct flights between Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, adding that it would improve trade relations between the countries. He also said that Afghanistan was a country of plentiful resources like gold, copper and lithium that are yet to be explored, elaborating that potential investors could visit Afghanistan with a view to studying mining opportunities.
“There is great potential for exporting dried fruits from Afghanistan to Sri Lanka,” Ghisy said.
“Our main concern is that South Asia remains the least integrated region and lack of progress was the key obstacle for development. The rail network connecting Afghanistan to Uzbekistan has been completed boosting trade with Central Asian countries in the future. Afghanistan will continue to invest in railway lines, power, roads and air routes,” he stated.
According to Ghisy, Afghanistan joined the WTO in July, 2016 and was enthusiastic to establish good trade relations with Sri Lanka.
“We are a new member and looking forward to trade by using the guidelines set out by the WTO. Another important factor was the opening up an air corridor between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan with direct flights connecting the two countries,” he said.
”We also have established direct flights with India to airlift food items for Afghanistan,” he added.
With the aim of fostering future trade relationships with Afghanistan, the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka intends to host Afghan trade delegations in the island.

OSL TAKE:

As Ghisy stated the mining potential in Afghanistan will provide a wealth of opportunity to interested investors.
Also, Afghanistan’s plan to continue investing in railway lines, power, roads and air routes will enable potential investors to explore these possibilities as viable business opportunities.
Once a trade agreement between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan is signed, companies registered in Sri Lanka will be able to exploit provisions of the agreement and explore all possible trade options.

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Article Code : VBS/AT/12092017/Z_3

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