President Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) Anjum Nisar has urged the government to review Afghanistan Transit Trade Agreement (ATTA). The chamber suggested the government to examine global agreements with the land locked countries including Indian agreement with Nepal for restricted trade, for re-drafting ATTA to curb its misuse.
In a communiqué, he said that Pakistan signed an agreement 43 years ago with Afghanistan to facilitate foreign trade of its land locked neighbour. The agreement has been massively abused by the unscrupulous elements to import products more then their actual demand in Afghanistan meant only to push back the products into Pakistan.
The ATTA resulted in a quasi legal smuggling in more ways than one. The majority of imported products booked for Afghanistan never reach Afghanistan after being re-routed in the boarder areas of the NWFP bordering with the country.
A big quantity also find its way back into the country flooding the markets in the major urban centers of the country with the goods imported under the ATTA. Due to ATTA, not only local manufacturing but also the legal importers are undermined. This, in turn, also deprive the government of substantial loss in terms of investment, corporate taxes and duties, he noted.