Tajikistan will import about 100,000 tons of wheat, 5,000 tons rice, 5,000 ton corn, edible oil and fertilisers to meet its domestic requirements. Tyhis was decided in a meeting between Tajikistan”s Chairman of the Agency for State Material Reserves Nurmahmad Akhmedov and Commerce Minister Makhdoom Amin Fahim here on Tuesday. Nurmahmad Akhemadov was leading a delegation of Tajikistan officials.
Both sides assured that they would continue to jointly work for enhancing bilateral trade and economic relations, said a statement. Tajikistan is under stress for providing basic food materials because of unprecedented heavy snowfalls in autumn and winter last year. The Economic Co-ordination Committee (ECC) of Cabinet Division has already approved export of 30,000 ton of sugar to Tajikistan at a price difference of $20 per ton from international price via Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP).
It was decided that Ministry of Commerce will arrange a meeting of the Tajik delegation with exporters for business contracts. A member of the Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP) said that Pakistan could provide between 50,000 and 100,000 tons of rice.
The Tajik delegation also showed interest in procuring 5,000 tons of Irri-6 and Irri-9 rice. The Tajik side proposed that rice might be delivered at the Torkham border crossing from where they would take up the freight cost. The Commerce Ministry will organise meetings of Pakistani exporters handling wheat, corn, flour and rice with the visiting delegation. Both sides are also learnt to have agreed to hold a technical level meeting soon to explore the potential of bilateral trade. A meeting with prominent rice has been arranged with the visiting delegation at TDAP”s Islamabad office.
