In Regaining the Lost Glory
Afghan carpets and dry fruits are of world standards and of great national pride for the country. Yet, the sectors suffer from an identity crisis as exports are channelized through intermediaries. Lack of direct seller-buyer linkage plagues the sectors both in terms of market credibility and earnings.
The case reference here runs like a modern day fairytale. It highlights how a group of Afghan carpet producers and dry fruit growers, being seeded with a good idea and implementing it could circumvent the long standing handicaps to become winners in their own rights. And thereby, set examples for others to emulate.
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Taking the pain without any gain: Afghanistan, a land of treasure, is now known to most of us as the hub of terror. Very few know that Afghan Dry fruits are one of the best in the world and they used to export 70% of their produces to India even three decades back.
The war ravaged economy has lost its market linkages and is trying to rebuild its economic activities. My mom says Afghan almond tastes much better than these Californian almonds, Indian market flooded with. Can it regain its past glory?
Afghanistan is also known for its rugs, where designs were influenced by Persian, Uzbek and Turk. Each rug tells a story – an Afghan designer told me once. Some say it’s the best in the world and another lot say it’s next to Persian rugs. Millions are employed in this sector but last two decades of war has ruined the market. Afghan rugs are sold by Pakistan under its brand name. Can it recreate it’s branding?
For a brave new world: Enterprising Afghans used to sell their dry fruits door to door in India earlier. Afghanistan needs to re-establish its old market linkages. In the course of the last decade Indian buying pattern has undergone sea changes with the influx of so many supermarkets flooded with Californian almonds. Afghanistan’s challenge would be to put its produce to the marketplace.
Similarly, Afghan rugs lack its branding and people know it as Pakistani rug. Afghan marketers need to market it directly to popularize it as Afghan rug. This calls for a national level strategy and huge marketing effort.
One USAID funded program trained dry fruits growers and marketers and also carpet producers. Dry fruits growers were trained in marketing and were assisted to advocate on the specific problems faced by the exporters in shipping their products to India. They were also offered guidance on re-entering the Indian market since this market is already aware about Afghan dry fruits. Carpet producers were also offered training on design and marketing. Both the groups were assisted in participating in international trade show.
A series of web based training was content developed and conducted out of India to train the audience on marketing and international trade show participation, how to exhibit and market their products and leverage the potential business opportunities that come with such forums.
In living the dream: When they participated in the India International Trade Fair (IITF) 2007 – eight (8) dry fruits marketers bagged orders worth more than $4 million. Forty (40) carpet producers bagged orders worth of $40 million when they participated in Domotex, Germany in 2008.
Additional benefits included – sizable footfalls, high awareness amongst business and general visitors, favorable PR and generation of trade queries. Capacity building followed by large scale trade show participation brought such huge traction – a lesson to be learned while working in international economic development.
A couple of trade show participation has brought some tangible results but this needs to be repeated and sustained. Donors need to act coherently and institution needs to be strengthened to make it sustainable – this can only put Afghan products in the global map back again. 
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