ASTANA – Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Economy Serik Zhumangarin proposed opening Kazakhstan’s trading house in Kabul during a meeting with Afghan Deputy Prime Minister Abdul Ghani Baradar on April 22, reported the Prime Minister’s press service.
Kazakhstan sends the second batch of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan. Photo credit: primeminister.kz
Baradar welcomed the initiative and expressed Afghanistan’s intention to open its own trading house in Kazakhstan. Zhumangarin also suggested that Kazakhstan could supply buses manufactured by QazTehna if there is interest from Afghanistan. The new trading houses will contribute to the activation of mutual investments in various areas of cooperation.
During the visit of the Kazakh delegation to Kabul, Zhumangarin handed over the second batch of humanitarian aid, consisting of medicines. Since 2021, Kazakhstan has sent tens of thousands of tons of flour, food, medicine, household items, and warm clothing to Afghanistan.
In March, Kazakhstan opened the UN Regional Center for Sustainable Development Goals for Central Asia and Afghanistan in Almaty, aiming to foster socio-economic and business cooperation in the region. The initiative has received support from other Central Asian countries.
In general, Kazakhstan is among Afghanistan’s top ten trading partners, with significant exports including grain and flour. In 2024, Kazakh sugar exports to Afghanistan surged to 143,000 tons, up from 19,100 tons in 2023. There is also growing potential for increased supplies of confectionery and flour products to the Afghan market, while Kazakhstan is interested in importing early-season Afghan vegetables.
At the end of last year, the countries signed a roadmap to increase trade turnover to $3 billion. Recognizing Afghanistan’s vast mineral resources, both sides are exploring opportunities in mining and resource extraction. Kazakh companies have expressed strong interest in investing in Afghanistan’s subsoil exploration and development.
On April 14, a group of Kazakh geologists and engineers visited several Afghan mining sites. They collected 130 kilograms of ore samples from potential deposits in Nuristan Province, which contained beryllium, lead, and zinc. The samples will be analyzed in Kazakhstan before the sides move forward with further negotiations.
Zhumangarin also met with Afghan Minister of Communications and Information Technology Najibullah Haqqani and proposed cooperation in infrastructure and telecommunications. He suggested Kazakh companies could participate in laying an optical cable as part of the construction of the new Torghundi–Herat railway section.
