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| By taking Afghan government control to the Taliban day by day Afghan economy has grown | Photo: Reuters |
According to a report by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Afghanistan's economy has started to change after the political upheaval of 2021. The country's economy is gradually returning to normal. However, there is still a long way to go before it is fully stabilized. Xinhua News Agency.
In 2024, Afghanistan's total trade value was $12.42 billion, with exports worth $1.8 billion and imports worth $10.61 billion. Earlier, in 2023, the country's total export value was $1.88 billion and imports were $7.71 billion.
The trade deficit stood at 8.81 billion in 2024. Here, exports accounted for 15 percent of total trade and imports for 85 percent.
The report said that recent figures show that Afghanistan's exports are stabilizing despite the challenges, with the country's private sector benefiting from government tariff support.
Compared to last year, Afghanistan's exports to Pakistan and China have decreased. They have increased to Turkey and India. Afghanistan's exports to neighboring countries including Iran, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and the United Arab Emirates have doubled.
The Afghan economy was once dependent on poppy cultivation and opium production. But after the ban on opium, the country's Taliban government has emphasized the collection of minerals and gems as an alternative.
It has been three years since US forces left Afghanistan. Since August 2021, Afghanistan's administrative activities have been under the supervision of the Taliban government.
According to World Bank estimates, opium alone accounted for 8 percent of the country's GDP. Farmers have suffered losses of about $1.5 billion since the government banned opium. 450,000 people involved in this cultivation have lost their jobs. However, the Afghan government is trying to diversify the economy.
Last August, it was three years since the Taliban took power in Afghanistan. At the time, an AFP report said that while the security situation had improved somewhat in these three years, the country's economy had stagnated. In addition, the humanitarian crisis was growing day by day.
According to the United Nations, about 4 million people in the country survive on bread and tea. Unemployment is rife. The World Bank fears that the country will not see any growth in the next three years.