KABUL - The Meshrano Jirga on Tuesday approved Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO)’s veterinary commission statute and a contract of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) about support to the Afghan energy sector.
Latif Zhwande, the upper house international affairs commission head, while presenting the ECO’s veterinary commission statute, said it had an introduction and 19 articles and had been signed by ECO member countries in 2010.
Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan are members of ECO.
Zhwande said the veterinary commission charter was aimed at improving health related activities and increasing animal products and allowing trading of products in a proper way in accordance with international standards specified by the World Organisation for Animal Health.
He said the charter was helpful and of great importance for Afghanistan in preventing animal diseases, exchange of experiences in animal health, standardizing food items and also effective in trading food products.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s joining of SAARC’s contract regarding support in power field would allow the country to access regional power, Zhwande said.
He said Afghanistan could be a good transit area for energy transmission in the region and could earn good revenue through this and it would bring about economic prosperity in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan being a connection line between south and central Asia could pave the way for purchasing, selling and transmission of energy in the region.
He said Afghanistan’s acceptance of such contracts gave it a chance to avail expertise from other countries in the field of power and contract could lead to a regional integration.
He said the SAARC contract was composed of 20 articles which had been signed by SAARC member countries’ foreign ministers in 2016.
Afghanistan, Bhutan, the Maldives, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Sri-Lanka are members of SAARC.
Both the contract and the charter had been earlier approved by the Wolesi Jirga and now endorsed by the Meshrano Jirga by a majority vote. (Pajhwok)