PESHAWAR, Aug 29: Traders doing business with Afghanistan and Central Asian Republics have asked the Afghan government to simplify its procedures and provide more facilities to enhance the volume of international trade through the war-ravaged country.

They said the volume of trade on either side of the Durand Line had come down mainly because of procedural hurdles created by Afghan authorities. On the other hand, they said, Pakistan had taken a number of steps to facilitate trade on this international trade corridor.

In a letter sent to the Ministry of Commerce, the Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) pointed out some of the bottlenecks hindering smooth trading with Afghanistan and Central Asian Republics.

The letter said Pakistani traders were required to deposit 110 per cent duty of the tariff value of Afghanistan to Afghan authorities posted at the Afghan Customs Station at the Torkham border as security deposit at the entry point.

“Such a huge security deposit creates liquidity problems for traders because it is only refunded after the goods are cleared from exit borders and the refunding process often takes more than one year,” the letter said.