Press Release

Afghan Political Leaders Kick Off Mazari Sharif International AgFair and Cashmere Exhibition

Mazari Sharif, Afghanistan  | Wednesday, March 11, 2009

H.E. Mr. Mohammad Asif Rahimi, the Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock (MAIL), and Full Rank General Atta Mohammad Noor, Governor of Balkh Province, kicked off the opening ceremony of the Mazari Sharif International AgFair and Cashmere Exhibition today at the Mechaniza-i-Zeraati Fairgrounds.

H.E. Minister Rahimi and Governor Atta welcomed the hundreds of VIPS, political leaders and Afghan and international exhibitors who attended the opening ceremony. The event will match international buyers with Afghan suppliers to facilitate business deals and stimulate the Afghan agriculture sector.

The Cashmere Exhibition will be a special section of the AgFair aimed at promoting the Afghan cashmere industry and marketing cashmere to buyers from Afghanistan, Italy, Scotland, China, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Switzerland. The AgFairs will also feature Knowledge Centers that provide participants with demonstrations on harvesting, marketing and processing cashmere and tips on ensuring the health of the goats that produce the valuable commodity.

The AgFair will be held at the Mechaniza-i-Zeraati Fairgrounds in Mazari Sharif on March 12-13. March 12 will be dedicated to business-to-business deals and will require a business card or tickets for entry. Tickets are available at the Kabul and Mazari Sharif offices of the MAIL, the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), the Afghanistan Investment Support Agency (AISA) and the Export Promotion Agency of Afghanistan (EPAA).

The Mazari Sharif International AgFair and Cashmere Exhibition will be open to the public for free on March 13 from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

USAID organizes the agricultural fairs in partnership with the MAIL, Afghanistan Investment Support Agency (AISA), the Export Promotion Agency of Afghanistan (EPAA), and the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) to create awareness of Afghanistan’s agricultural sector, to link buyers and sellers and to boost sales of Afghan products nationally and internationally. The AgFairs also serve as an opportunity to exchange ideas on how to improve agricultural production and agribusiness in Afghanistan and to demonstrate improved technologies and inputs.