KARACHI: It may be recalled that in September 2021, the first consignment of the National Logistic Cell (NLC) left Pakistan for Turkiye and Azerbaijan through Iran. The NLC had started its operations under the TIR Convention; it was the second operator in Pakistan and the first in the public sector to begin its operations under TIR. The trucks, operated by Pakistan Company NLC and carrying textiles and tyres for export, had demonstrated transit time savings of 80 percent on the normal maritime route.

The successful activation of the ITI corridor was thanks to close cooperation between ECO and IRU, as well as all public and private stakeholders in Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey. It will definitely help boost regional integration and connectivity. With the traditional sea route taking 25 to 40 days, the transport has successfully demonstrated huge time savings. TIR transports can now reach Istanbul from Pakistan in as little as six days, with highly secure and speedy border crossings, reducing risk as well as costs and time.

Previously, goods had to be offloaded from Pakistan’s trucks and reloaded onto Iran’s trucks at the Taftan-Zahedan border. The NLC has been awarded the TIR license by the Pakistan National Authorisation Committee (PNAC) of the International Transport Union (IRU), which administers the TIR Convention internationally.

It was October 21, 2021, when the Ministry of Commerce urged for the facilitation of transit trade through Iran via the Taftan border for exports to Central Asian Republics (CARs), Azerbaijan, Iraq, Turkiye, etc. In this regard, National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Commerce was briefed about transit trade to Azerbaijan and CARs via Iran. The meeting was chaired by MNA Syed Naveed Qamar. It is pertinent to mention here that while banks in Pakistan do not issue an e-form for export to Iran due to sanctions on the neighboring country, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) was also not issuing the form even though no banking transactions take place between Iran and Pakistan for transit of goods through Iran. However, after one year of efforts, SBP has been inclined to withdraw its objections but the private banks are yet not following SBP’s policy to facilitate the transit trade through the use of Iranian roads for unknown reasons.

By virtue of its geographical position, the importance that Pakistan has cannot be undermined. Pakistan’s geostrategic advantage lies in the fact that it shares borders with Iran, Afghanistan, China, and India while the Arabian Sea connects it to the rest of the world. This advantage has not only evoked much interest among the major powers of the globe but also promoted multi-lateral trade with neighboring countries. Pakistan, therefore, serves as an essential hub operating as a focal point of logistics to the neighboring states, especially land-locked Afghanistan.

 Thus, Pakistan stands at the crossroads of becoming a major trade corridor for tapping the Central Asian markets by virtue of its strategic location with three efficient seaports. Pakistan, as an important logistics hub for transit trade, will undoubtedly bring prosperity to South Asia along the trade routes and beyond, as nothing opens up an area to economic development better than good transportation networks with good transit rules and an ability to transport goods and people effectively. The Establishment of the Directorate General of Transit Trade serves to facilitate bilateral trade between Pakistan and its neighboring land-locked countries, thus converting Pakistan into a “land bridge” between South Asia and Central Asia. The Directorate General of Transit Trade (DGTT) was established on 1st August 2012 vide SRO No.932 (I)/2012. DGTT is based at Custom House, Karachi, and has regional offices in Karachi, Peshawar, and Quetta. The Director General reports to the Member (Customs), the Federal Board of Revenue. The Regional offices of the Directorate General are headed by a Director and are assisted by Additional Directors, Deputy Directors, Assistant Directors, Superintendents or Principal Appraisers, and other officials of Customs.

Published in The Daily National Courier, January, 10 2023

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