Afghanistan’s Animal Skin and Hide Exports from Herat Surge Sevenfold
Local officials in Herat have announced that Afghanistan exported over 1,280 tons of animal skins and hides worth $1.123 million during the first three months of the current solar year. This figure represents nearly a sevenfold increase compared to the same period last year, when only 168 tons of these products were exported to foreign markets.
According to information from the Herat Chamber of Commerce and Investment, these products were exported to Iran, the United States, India, Turkey, Austria, and Lebanon. Mohammad Yousuf Amin, the executive head of the chamber, stated that animal skins and hides are collected from various provinces and transferred to Herat for initial processing and packaging before being sent to foreign markets.
Despite the rise in exports, exporters criticize the lack of necessary facilities within the country. They say that due to shortages of cold storage and leather processing factories, they are forced to sell their products at low prices.
In previous years, Pakistan was the main destination for these products, but after trade routes were closed, exporters sought new markets. However, economic experts say the Taliban administration has not yet presented an effective plan to establish processing industries and prevent raw material exports, which remains a fundamental challenge for Afghanistan’s export sector.
