Farmers display newly-harvested carrots in Balkh province, Afghanistan, Nov. 11, 2023. (Photo by M Fardin Nawrozi/Xinhua)
KABUL, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- The Afghan caretaker government's acting Minister of Industry and Commerce Nooruddin Azizi said the administration has been looking forward to achieving self-sufficiency within the next three years.
"We are going towards self-sufficiency and will achieve the goal within the next three years. We will improve our trade relations as well," a private television channel Tolonews quoted Azizi as saying on Thursday.
Talking to a panel debate arranged by the Tolonews on Thursday night, Azizi said "We need to fund our budget from our national revenue. We should not need foreign assistance."
Workers harvest saffron flowers in Herat province, Afghanistan, Nov. 13, 2023. (Photo by Mashal/Xinhua)
The war-torn country has been facing harsh economic problems following the withdrawal of the U.S.-led forces from Afghanistan in August 2021 and holding assets of the Afghan central bank worth more than 9 billion U.S. dollars in American banks.
"We had exports to approximately more than 60 countries. It is a fact that we have our major exports to India, Pakistan and China. We are trying to target central Asia and Russia from now on," Azizi said in the panel debate.
Afghanistan's main export items include coal, saffron, fresh and dry fruits, hand-woven carpets, precious and semi-precious stones.■
