Afghan Industrialists Return Amid Deportations, Spur Economic Hopes
Amid the ongoing deportation of Afghan refugees from Iran and Pakistan, a portion of those returning includes industrialists and investors who had previously invested in these countries.
The Ministry of Industry and Commerce stated that a committee titled “Committee for the Organization of Returning Entrepreneurs and Industrialists and Provision of Facilities for Them,” established in the month of Qaws 1402 (December 2023), has so far confirmed the return of 24 industrialists. The process of verifying the documents of additional returning entrepreneurs and investors is currently ongoing.
Most of these individuals have returned to Afghanistan from Iran and Pakistan. According to the ministry, the returning industrialists have already begun investing in various production sectors.
The sectors in which Afghan industrialists had invested abroad include:
- Car paint and thinner
- Electrical cables and electronic device production
- PVC pipes and baked bricks production
- Plastic utensils production
- Cosmetic products manufacturing
- Women’s clothing and embroidery production
- Poultry feed production
- Plastic goods manufacturing
- Shoe and sandal manufacturing
- Used tire processing
- Detergent and washing materials production
The ministry’s spokesperson, Akhundzada Abdul Salam Jawad, said:
“The ministry has planned numerous facilities to encourage returning investors. These include allocating residential plots, distributing industrial land, customs exemptions for one vehicle and industrial machinery, five years of tax exemption, and other support measures.”
Meanwhile, the Kabul Industrialists’ Union and several economic experts believe that if the Islamic Emirate increases support for returning industrialists and investors, the return of Afghan industrialists from abroad could accelerate.
The head of the Kabul Industrialists’ Union, Abdul Jabbar Safi, stated:
“The private sector is also ready to support them, and the government should facilitate business opportunities for them so that they are not forced to leave the country again.”
The return of Afghan investors and industrialists from abroad not only plays a constructive role in the country’s economic growth but also creates new job opportunities within Afghanistan.
