January 2017—Companies ranging from business startups to corporate heavyweights are driving economic growth and creating jobs in Afghanistan, but obtaining a business license in the country has been a lengthy and costly process, frustrating even determined investors.

In a major step toward overcoming these challenges, the Afghan Government merged two parallel administrative bodies to streamline the process. The Ministry of Commerce and Industries announced on Sept. 28, 2016, that the business-licensing department of the Afghanistan and Investment Support Agency merged with the ministry’s Afghanistan Central Business Registry-Intellectual Property (ACBR-IP).

ACBR-IP will issue a single business license in place of the multiple investment and trade licenses that had been required of companies. The license, which is valid for three years, will be issued in Kabul and in 22 provincial offices at a cost of 30,000 Afghan Afghanis ($450) per license. Previously, companies had to renew multiple licenses annually at a high cost.

“We are at a very crucial point, and we need to take steps to improve our economy. Fortunately, the distance between the private sector and the government has been eliminated,” said Minister of Commerce and Industries Humayoon Rasaw. “The government is continually trying to encourage investment, and we are trying to change business people into investors. This is a good day for the private sector.”

The USAID Afghanistan Trade and Revenue Project supported the change in process in 2016 by preparing the merger plan, modifying software and hardware, and providing on-the-job training for staff. ACBR-IP will make application for business licenses available online following the installation of hardware provided by the World Bank and Harakat, an Afghan nonprofit organization.

“This is one of the most important steps for facilitating business in Afghanistan,” said Deputy Minister of Commerce and Industries Mohammad Qurban Haqjo. “We have made the process simple and easy, and the Ministry of Commerce and Industries is still trying to do more to facilitate business.”

USAID’s Afghanistan Trade and Revenue Project, which runs from 2013 to 2017, works with the government and private sector to improve Afghanistan’s trade environment. With project support, Afghanistan acceded to the World Trade Organization in July 2016, passed legal and regulatory reforms for WTO conformity, and approved several significant regional trade and transit agreements. Since 2014, the project has also supported 125 Afghan businesses, which made over $25 million in confirmed sales at 11 high profile international trade exhibitions.

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