ISLAMABAD: The first-ever consignment of trucks from Uzbekistan under an Convention on the International Transport of Goods for traffic-in-transit of goods across the border has reached Pakistan via the Torkham border.

Commerce Adviser Abdul Razak Dawood and National Security Adviser Moeed Yusuf received four trucks loaded with yarn. Security officials from both countries were present on the occasion.

“This is a continuation of the government’s efforts to strengthen regional coordination,” Mr Dawood said, adding that Pakistan would further strengthen trade ties with Central Asian States and Uzbekistan.

A similar consignment from Pakistan has already reached Uzbekistan via the Torkham border.

To speed up trade under the convention, the Customs department has developed a robust system for joining paperless regime and integrating sea to the journey by road in order to tap maximum potential of traffic-in-transit of goods across the border.

The Customs estimates with inherent advantages of 80 per cent shorter and 38pc cheaper trade routes the development of road-sea multimodal TIR module and implementation of digital TIR will result in a sharp increase of imports, exports and transit through Pakistan under TIR regime.

A senior customs official told Dawn that a procedure was developed for integrating sea to the journey by road and was sent to the International Road Union (IRU) — another body of TIR regime for vetting. The IRU approved the procedure on August 17.

Published in Dawn, November 4th, 2021