Afghanistan's Agenda for Action - Economic Growth - usaid

Afghanistan’s Agenda for Action: Developing the Trade & Business Environment – August 2007TRADE-RELATED FLOWSOF PEOPLEIntroductionTrade related flows of people are adequate but a seriesof improvements are needed to achieve internationallevels for ease of passage and to encourageinternational trade. Travel, however, and thereforetrade-related flows of people to Afghanistan, is verylimited at this time because the security environmentremains volatile and unpredictable. Tourism (except socalled“extreme tourism”) is out of the question. Theability of Afghan authorities to maintain public safetyand order while ensuring the security of citizens andvisitors is limited. Even though the capital of Kabul isconsidered fairly safe, extreme caution is advised in theU.S. State Department’s and other foreigngovernments’ travel advisories.Elsewhere in Afghanistan, a significant increase inattacks in the south and southwestern areas of thecountry has occurred and a seasonal surge in insurgentactivity is expected. In particular, many sources predictmore violence in the spring of 2007 when snowboundmountain passes reopen. Potential target areas includekey national or international governmentestablishments, international organizations, nongovernmentalorganizations and any location withexpatriate personnel, as well as public areas popularwith the expatriate community. Violence, and thethreat of violence, is restricting trade development inmany parts of the country, cutting off workopportunities for Afghans and those wishing to invest inAfghanistan.Despite the effect these concerns of low trade-relatedpeople flow in Afghanistan, key infrastructureimprovements have been made and more are planned.Over $8 billion in aid and investment from theinternational community has greatly improvedAfghanistan’s prospects for the future and as neededstability is achieved will allow for larger numbers ofcross border trade related travel.Legal FrameworkIn summary, the legal framework for the flow of peopleis adequate to meet the country’s needs for theforeseeable future. All visitors to Afghanistan mustposses a valid passport and an Afghan visa. The basictourist visa entitles a traveler to 30 days stay inAfghanistan. The Afghan government requires that thisone-month visa be obtained prior to traveling toAfghanistan. Visas are secured any Afghan Consulate orEmbassy around the world. Only native Afghans livingabroad can return for short trips without a visa.Implementing InstitutionsImmigration functions in Afghanistan are handled by theAfghan Border Police (ABP)\ which falls under theMinistry of Interior (MOI). The ABP are responsible forentry and exit of people at the 14 Border CrossingPoints (BCPs), Afghanistan’s 4 international airports(Kabul, Mazar-e Sharif, Kandahar, and Herat), and inpatrolling the large areas in between the BCPs from theborder to the interior of the country for 50 kilometers.Many “informal” crossing points, in excess of 70 roughroads, river /creek fords and open ground accesspoints, are spread across Afghanistan’s extensiveborders. Additionally, the air base at Bagram is plannedto receive Customs staffing in the near future to handleinternational courier shipments but no Immigrationclearance is planned there for the immediate future.ABP has over 8200 officers in Afghanistan. Only a smallnumber of officers are assigned to Afghanistan’straditional passport and immigration checkpoints. ABPofficers assigned to these functions must be literatewhich limits the numbers available for the assignment.125