These days, our consumer market is facing one of the most severe shortages of different commodities, most importantly, food items and daily consumer goods. According to the shopkeepers and the suppliers, this shortage is due to less supply from the neighboring countries especially Pakistan. The border with Pakistan was closed down before the first round of elections and then again when the second round of elections was held two weeks before. The borders were reopened but due to some of the security measures, the movement is not as smooth as it used to be previously and the exchange of goods on both the sides of border have greatly been affected.

It must be kept in mind that we depend on our neighboring countries and China for different products. The food items and daily consumer goods are mostly imported from Pakistan, Iran and some of our Central Asian neighbors. The supply of these goods is affected whenever there is any kind of tension on the border due to different reasons. Usually, the border security is intensified with Pakistan due to the increase in infiltration of terrorists to both the sides of border and the cross-border tensions between the security forces of Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The borders were closed down due to the recent elections in our country. In the same way, Pakistan intensified its border security on the occasion of its parliamentary elections. In the same, the security on border has greatly been increased on both the sides due to the ongoing military operations of Pakistani forces in its northern tribal areas and it is feared that militants may flee the area to enter the afghan soil.

However, it remains a harsh fact that our food sector badly depends on Pakistan and any kind of problem in the supply of food items from Pakistan greatly affects the local market. In the present situation of the shortage of food items, the prices of food products have greatly increased and the suffering of common public has greatly increased.

The problem can be solved in two ways. One is to increase our local food production which would definitely require the planning and management of many years. We hope that concerned ministries especially the ministry of food and agriculture might be working to boost up local food production. Second and temporary and urgently needed solution is to bring more ease in the cross-border supply of goods into the Afghan soil. Traders complain that the present situation has been worsened by the unnecessary strictness of our security forces that is also backed by some kind of political interference.

The situation is also due to the ignorance and indifference of government as our traders have been making great hue and cry for almost a month to facilitate border crossings in order to avoid the food shortage and rise in prices. We hope that after the problem has been raised, there won’t be any delay in tackling the situation.