ISLAMABAD: The government has directed timely completion of the border crossing points at Torkham and Chaman to expedite the trade clearance to Afghanistan.
According to an official statement, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Friday chaired a meeting to review the progress on the development of border crossing complexes at Torkham and Chaman border crossing as a part of the Integrated Transit Trade Management System (ITTMS) project.
The finance secretary, the Economic Affairs Division secretary, Quartermaster general of the Pakistan Army, Asian Development Bank (ADB) country director, NLC director general, ITTMS project director, and senior officials of the finance ministry, ADB, and Infrastructure Project Development Facility participated in the meeting.
The project director updated the meeting regarding the progress of the project.
The NLC director general briefed the meeting regarding the technical aspects of the project as the organisation has been assigned to carry out the civil works of the project on the two sites.
The ADB country director informed the meeting that the ADB considers it as an important project due to its significance in the context of the corridor for trade envisaged under the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC).
The finance minister appreciated the efforts of all stakeholders, including ADB, in ensuring satisfactory progress of the project so far. He said that the project is based on the vision of the government to develop Pakistan as an economic corridor and enhance regional connectivity.
He said that the project, once completed, will result in significant reduction in processing times at the border crossing points at Torkham and Chaman. He urged all stakeholders to ensure completion of the project in accordance with the scheduled timelines.
