India and Afghanistan Agree to Follow Up on Trade, Customs and Connectivity

India and Afghanistan used a virtual meeting of their Joint Working Group on Trade, Commerce and Investment on 1 September 2026 to review the obstacles that still slow commerce between the two countries. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry said officials from commerce, industry, customs, regulatory bodies and diplomatic missions took part and agreed to follow up on customs cooperation, regulatory work in pharmaceuticals and agriculture, trade connectivity and closer business-to-business contact. The session was described as warm and constructive. The test will be whether that tone produces changes at ports, banks and visa counters.

Image from DD News

The agenda was familiar because the problems are familiar

The two sides discussed trade facilitation and customs cooperation, visas for Afghan traders, banking and financial channels, trade in medicines and farm products, energy cooperation, investment promotion, tariff concessions, cargo connectivity and port-related issues. None of these items is new. Each has appeared in earlier talks because each still matters to exporters and importers who deal with delayed clearances, awkward payments, limited shipping options and uneven rules. Both sides agreed to strengthen institutional cooperation and to pursue follow-up in the areas they named: closer customs and data-sharing arrangements, greater regulatory coordination in pharmaceuticals and agriculture, improved trade connectivity, and more promotion of investment and direct business engagement.

The size of the trade, and why the numbers still disappoint

Official Indian data put two-way trade at USD 907.85 million in 2025-26, with Indian exports of USD 253.63 million and imports of USD 654.22 million. Coverage of the meeting notes that bilateral trade has hovered around USD 1 billion for several years. That is useful commerce, but it remains below the pre-2021 level of more than USD 1.8 billion that officials in both capitals have treated as a recovery benchmark. The composition of trade has been stable. 

Afghanistan sells India dried fruits, nuts, figs, raisins, apples, pistachios, saffron, cumin, almonds, walnuts and asafoetida. India supplies pharmaceuticals, textiles, sugar, industrial inputs, auto parts, batteries and farm machinery. Afghan figures released earlier in 2026 claimed a sharper rise in exports to India and described India as Afghanistan’s largest export destination as shipments to Pakistan fell. Indian import statistics do not match those numbers exactly, which is common when two customs systems classify goods differently, but the direction is the same: farm produce is keeping the relationship alive while Indian exports have been slower to rebound.

Connectivity is the constraint that shapes every other conversation

Afghanistan is landlocked, and the shortest overland route to India is closed because Pakistan does not allow India–Afghanistan transshipment. That single fact explains why Iran’s Chabahar Port keeps returning to every trade discussion and why air freight has been revived for perishable and high-value goods. The September meeting again listed cargo connectivity and port issues among the subjects under review. Banking is the companion problem. Goods can move only as far as payments allow, and traders on both sides have long complained that financial channels remain clumsy. Visa facilitation for Afghan businesspeople was discussed for the same reason. 

A trader who cannot travel, clear a consignment or settle an invoice is not going to expand a market, however friendly the official statement. Pharmaceutical and agricultural trade featured prominently because Indian generic medicines remain one of the few manufactured exports Afghanistan still needs at scale, while Afghan farm goods remain the one category India continues to buy in volume. Both sides said they would work on regulatory cooperation in these sectors so that standards, inspections and market access become more predictable.

This meeting did not appear from nowhere

The Joint Working Group was reactivated during the November 2025 visit to India of Afghanistan’s Minister of Industry and Commerce, Alhaj Nooruddin Azizi. That visit produced a set of institutional promises: commercial representatives in each other’s missions, a joint chamber of commerce and industry, exploration of mining and other high-value sectors, and the restart of air freight corridors on the Kabul–Delhi and Kabul–Amritsar routes. 

Azizi also asked for faster business visas, regular shipping from Chabahar, dry-port development in Nimruz and smoother handling of Afghan cargo at Nhava Sheva. The two sides talked about joint investment in pharmaceuticals, cold storage, fruit processing, industrial parks and export-processing zones. In July 2026, a Joint Committee Meeting in New Delhi reviewed a wider set of ties, including humanitarian assistance, food security, healthcare, education, visas and connectivity, while agriculture ministers agreed to work toward a separate long-term roadmap for farming and livestock. The September trade meeting is the commercial chapter of that same effort, not a sudden reset.

The MGMM Outlook 

The latest India–Afghanistan Joint Working Group meeting reflects a steady and practical effort to strengthen economic ties through trade, customs cooperation and improved connectivity. Rather than announcing sweeping agreements, both countries focused on resolving long-standing challenges that affect businesses, including banking channels, business visas, cargo movement and regulatory coordination in pharmaceuticals and agriculture. The discussions reinforce India’s continued commitment to supporting regional commerce while providing Afghan traders and exporters with more reliable access to one of their most important markets.

The relationship carries significance beyond trade figures alone. Afghanistan’s agricultural exports, including dried fruits, saffron and nuts, complement India’s growing demand, while Indian pharmaceuticals and industrial goods remain essential for Afghan consumers and businesses. As connectivity through Chabahar Port and air cargo corridors gains greater attention, smoother logistics and predictable trade regulations could help restore bilateral trade closer to its earlier potential. The real success of this partnership will be measured not by diplomatic statements, but by faster cargo movement, easier financial transactions and greater opportunities for businesses on both sides.

(Sources: DD News, News on AIR, The Economic Times)