Date: November 20, 2008
Venue: Badambagh, Kabul
The first Afghan pomegranate world fair organized in Kabul by the Accelerating Sustainable Agriculture Program (ASAP) of USAID Afghanistan in cooperation with the Afghan Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation, Export Promotion Agency of Afghanistan (EPAA), Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries (ACCI), and Afghanistan Investment Support Agency (AISA). The purpose of this fair was to introduce and promote marketing for Afghan pomegranate, a best quality pomegranate in the world.
he participants in the opening ceremony on November 19 were H.E. Mohammad Asef Rahimi, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, and Irrigation, H.E. Sebghatullah Mujadidi, Head of the Upper House of the Afghan Parliament, officials of the related Afghan government agencies, and representatives of the private sector, including some businessmen from the United States, the United Kingdom and India.Addressing the audience in his opening speech, H.E. Mohammad Asef Rahimi said, “The real economic development and welfare in Afghanistan come from a promoted agriculture sector. Afghan Pomegranate, which is an important agricultural product and a major export item of Afghanistan, with its peculiar taste, color and benefits to human health, has special value in the world markets, in particular American and European markets.”In this fair, around four tons of pomegranates from Kandahar, Farah, Badghis, Urezgan, Helmand, and Kabul (Sorobi district) were showcased. According to the Afghan National Statistics Office (ANSO), pomegranate export value to India, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, United Arab Emirates and Iran in the first nine months of 2008 reached US$ 19 million, which shows 35% increase over 2007 export value of
pomegranate.
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