World TPO Awards 2008

Best TPO from a Least Developed Country

Afghanistan’s trade promotion organization, Export Promotion Agency of Afghanistan (EPAA) won the Award for the Best TPO from a Least Developed Country.

War-torn Afghanistan is one of the world’s poorest nations. It suffers under a huge trade deficit that could be alleviated if the private sector participated more in the processing, marketing and distribution of the country’s products. To ease the pressure on the balance of payments through exports and increased local production, the EPAA was established as an executive agency of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in September 2006.

Just 20 months on, EPAA is making good progress in expanding the country’s exports by launching an Export Committee to move the reform process forward. In 2007, EPAA successfully lobbied to waive the 2% export tax, convinced officials to stop collecting illegal fees on exports and worked with government to streamline export procedures, including setting up a One Stop Office.

Increased exports, partnership and training

EPAA’s Global Marketing Strategy is reinvigorating exports, such as carpets and dried fruits, by re establishing international market linkages through participating in trade shows in the US, Germany, China and Kabul. The shows were a tremendous success for participants and have proved to be smart investments for EPAA and its partners. Exports have increased 10% in 2007 over 2006.

EPAA is coordinating public and private sector initiatives to create an enabling environment for exports, which involves cooperation and partnership among stakeholders. EPAA has also developed a training programme to build and develop staff capacity.