MANILA, Aug 1: The heads of delegation of Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan signed a protocol with Pakistan’s Finance Minister, Shaukat Aziz to take benefit from North-South Corridor connecting their respective countries with Pakistan’s Ports.

They also supported the east-west corridor through Iran. These countries delegation heads on the occasion also identified necessary improvement in customs, transit matters, telecommunications, cargo checking and logistic services being priority matters at the Pakistan ports.

The areas for further deliberation and agreement include accession to international conventions, requirement of bilateral agreements, need for technical assistance training and capacity-building.

Pakistan being better equipped offered training facilities in some of these areas. The participants agreed to establish Central and South Asia Trade and Transport Forum, where in future, the major issues could be discussed and resolved as well as studies undertaken for projects, planning, financing and flow of information.

The Ministerial Conference on Transport and Trade in Central and South Asia on Friday held its concluding session at the Asian Development Bank Headquarters.

Pakistan delegation was represented by Shaukat Aziz, Minister for Finance and Economic Affairs, and Ahmed Ali, Minister for Communications.

Ministers and delegates from Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Pakistan participated, besides a large number of experts and officers of the Asian Development Bank.

In his concluding statement, Minister Ahmed Ali congratulated the participating countries for having successfully concluded the First Ministerial Conference on such important areas as trade and transportation.

He said that the discussions held were extremely constructive and useful and Pakistan, which initiated new trade access with Central Asia, fully supported the role of the ADB.

The Bank would act as secretariat to the newly formulated Central and South Asia Transport and Trade forum (CSATTF). Pakistan was confident that this Forum will act as a facilitator in identifying the bottlenecks in the development of trade and transport in the Region and take steps to remove them.

The region as a whole would be benefited form increased economic opportunities and the economies of the countries involved would flourish.

Pakistan offered its three ports of Karachi, Port Qasim and Gwadar as well as its multiple highways corridors for facilitation of trade in the region to ensure speedy and efficient clearance and movement of goods.

Pakistan also offered its technical know-how and expertise in customs procedures, road safety and trade related matters, the minister added.

These details shall, however, be finalized in the next ministerial meeting to be held in December in Manila and an invitation would be extended to Turkmenistan to participate.

Meanwhile, Asian Development Bank ADB and Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development signed an agreement for a project to reconstruct Kandahar-Spin Boldak road in Afghanistan.

Abdulwahab Al-Bader, Deputy Director General of the Kuwait Fund, and Philip Erquiaga, Principal Director of ADB’s Office of Co-financing Operations, signed the agreement.

The government of Afghanistan, was represented by Deputy Finance Minister Abdul Salam Rahimy, who signed a grant agreement with Al-Bader of the Kuwait Fund.

Kuwait is contributing to the ADB-backed road improvement scheme through an infusion of $15 million equivalent in grant co-financing. The funds will co-finance rehabilitation of the 105-km Kandahar-Spin Boldak road, one of the country’s major links with its neighbours.

Rehabilitation of the road, including two major bridges and 33-km of heavily damaged sections, forms the main component of a $30 million project partly funded by a $15 million grant from ADB’s Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction(JFPR).

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said has also extended a loan of $150 million for emergency infrastructure rehabilitation in Afghanistan.

The project is intended to help repair roads, and the electric power and gas sectors, Manila-based ADB said in a statement.

It will restore road links to neighbouring Uzbekistan, rehabilitate transmission lines in the northern provinces and the power distribution system in Kabul as well as repair damaged gas production, transmission and distribution facilities in Sheberghan.

ADB President Tadao Chino and Afghanistan’s Deputy Minister of Finance, Abdul Salam Rahimy signed the loan agreement.

In another development, the ADB and the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development on Friday, signed an agreement to cooperate in a plan to reconstruct the Kandahar-Spin Boldak road in Afghanistan.—APP/AFP