One of the focal points of success in Afghanistan rests in the hands of whether or not the Taliban continues to profit off the sale of opium. Despite consistent efforts by the United States military forces to curtail this cash cow, because there is nothing else for the farmers to grow, they have to resort to opium. Back in January, I talked about the three step plan to destroy the Taliban. More soldiers are already being deployed to Afghanistan. President Obama is going to be pushing NATO to give more if they have the means to do so. Pakistan is fighting against the Taliban and making strong pushes against them. Two of the three steps are being accomplished.
Unfortunately, the issue of the poppy and sale of opium and heroin was still a huge problem. Because the Afghan people need to make money doing something, they resorted to growing poppy because there was some profit in it for them, even if it meant that the Taliban was going to make most of the money and continue financing their insurgency. Over the previous few months, there has been consistent economic growth in Afghanistan that will do a few things for the efforts there.
Earlier in November, an agreement was reached between India and Afghanistan that resulted in the sale of twelve tonnes of apples. This was a paltry amount that only made $2,000 per tonne. However, what’s interesting about this and what makes it so beneficial for Afghanistan is that, if these farmers were to have sold the produce in Afghanistan, they would have only made about $500 on the tonne. In other words, it is becoming more economical to export the fruit. It’s a small step for Afghanistan, but it’s a step that will conclude in less opium and more apples. By the end of the year, Afghanistan hopes to sell 400 tonnes of apples to India. It’s not a large amount of money in terms of success, but it’s a step.
The important thing to take from this exchange between Afghanistan and India is the idea of trade and stability. Because of the increasing number of soldiers in Afghanistan, including the thirty thousand that President Obama has announced to send, there has been stability in more regions in Afghanistan. This stability has allowed farmers to focus on growing products that they can export and profit on. While it is not a considerable sum of money in comparison to what American companies like to make, the $800,000 that can be made from this would be incredibly beneficial to quite a few Afghan families.
As more stability comes to Afghanistan, foreign investment will start to appear in the region. As I wrote about in the beginning of October, before there can be true economic propserity, there needs to be security. If we can push security higher and make things more safe for the average Afghan person, not only will foreign investment start to come in, but nationalistic investment will come. Afghan families will feel more comfortable investing their earnings in their home country and that will result in an increased growth in the country.
Although it is only apples, it’s a step towards success for Afghanistan. As times goes on and Afghanistan continues to see more stability, the exportation of products such as wheat and cashmere will increase as well. All of this economic stability will mean that Afghanistan has begun its growth from a third world country to one that is globalizing and joining the ranks of the world. It’s a step by step process and apparently, they’re on their way. It’s good to see Afghanistan seeing this small steps of success.
About Jacob Cohen Donnelly
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