Afghanistan and Uzbekistan private sector representatives signed 25 agreements worth about $514 million at a business conference in Kabul on Saturday, the Taliban’s commerce ministry said, underscoring growing economic engagement between the two countries.
The agreements, valued at $514.8 million, were concluded during the “Business Matchmaking Conference between the Private Sector of Afghanistan and Uzbekistan,” the ministry said.
The event brought together business leaders and officials from both sides, including Nooruddin Azizi, the Taliban’s minister of industry and commerce, and Shavkat Abdurazaqov, the governor of Uzbekistan’s Namangan province. More than 40 Uzbek traders and investors participated, the ministry said.
The agreements span a range of sectors, including poultry production, trade in cement and coal, imports of fuel and copper, and exports of dried fruits and vegetables. Other areas include food processing, asphalt, nonalcoholic beverages and sports services.
Azizi described Afghanistan as a “reliable partner” for trade and investment and emphasized efforts to expand economic cooperation with Uzbekistan. He also said the two sides had reached a preferential tariff arrangement to facilitate exports of certain goods from Afghanistan.
Abdurazaqov said the agreements would help strengthen economic ties and noted that stability in Afghanistan would benefit the broader region, including Uzbekistan.
Karim Hashemi, head of the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Investment, said Afghanistan’s businesses were prepared to deepen cooperation with Uzbek counterparts.
The agreements come as private sectors from both countries seek to expand bilateral trade, which Uzbek officials estimate at about $1.68 billion.
They have expressed hope that closer cooperation — including the establishment of a joint business council agreed upon in recent talks in Tashkent — could increase that figure to $5 billion in the coming years.
