HASHMATULLAH GHAFOORİ: AFGHANISTAN EXPORTS PINE NUTS TO CHINA
Afghanistan has inked $2.2 billion worth of contracts with China for exporting pine nuts in the next five years, an official said on Monday. Hashmatullah Ghafoori, deputy minister for irrigation and natural resources, told a news conference in Kabul that the contracts have been inked with different Chinese firms for the eventual export of 62,000 tons of pine-nuts. He added this would fetch a much-needed $2.2 billion to Afghan farmers and traders in the said period. Ghafoori also said that additional contracts, worth $9 million, have been inked for the export of pistachio, almond and walnuts. As per the deal, the consignments of these products would be transported via land-route from Afghanistan through the Central Asian states to China. Under President Ashraf Ghani, a former World Bank economist, Afghanistan is pursuing a policy of turning the landlocked country into a hub for transition of goods as well as ideas in the region. Beijing renders full support to Afghanistan in reinvigora...