KABUL – *Iranian officials said this week in Kabul that in order to boosttrade through Chabahar port, Iran is working to connect Chabahar’s railwayline to the railway network in the country. *

Iranian embassy officials said the development of Afghanistan’s railways tothe north and east of the country could play a major role in expandingtrade between Afghanistan, Iran and Central Asian countries.

“We are working to connect the Chabahar Free Zone to Afghanistan; to SouthAsia, to Arab countries, to Central Asia, through the national railwaylines of Iran; in fact to the Caucasus region and via Turkey to Europe,”said Sayed Qasim Zakari economic advisor to the embassy of Iran.

Meanwhile, a number of businessmen have called for export companies tostandardize packing in order to increase exports.

“It’s clear that the issue of certifications and other issues have beenraised; businessmen must standardize (packaging), and businessmen mustinvest in this and when they invest in packaging and processing, theythemselves have to take responsibility and this is their job,” said onebusinessman.

This comes as government seals deals to also open major air cargo routes ina bid to break the tradition of dependence on Pakistan as an import /export corridor.