India, Afghanistan boost spice sector ties during Azizi’s New Delhi visit

Afghanistan’s Minister of Industry and Commerce, Al-Haj Nooruddin Azizi, concluded a five-day visit to New Delhi from November 19 to November 23, 2025, during which both sides placed primary emphasis on deepening cooperation in the spice sector while mapping practical steps for broader industrial and trade ties. Central to the talks with the Spices Board of India was a plan to expand spice exports, raise processing and quality standards, and explore joint investment to establish spice production and processing factories inside Afghanistan. The discussions also addressed challenges in the bilateral medicine trade, including pharmaceutical imports, regulatory hurdles and investment potential; in a statement on X, Afghanistan’s Ministry of Industry and Commerce said the Indian side signalled readiness for joint investment and setting up spice production facilities, while Azizi assured India that Kabul would extend full support to reputable pharmaceutical firms willing to operate there.

Both sides agreed to exchange sectoral delegations to turn proposals into action. Afghan spice officials will visit advanced spice factories in India to study modern processing, packaging and quality control systems, and a delegation from India’s spice industry will travel to Kabul to assess on-the-ground feasibility for pharmaceutical manufacturing and export-oriented production. The Afghan ministry highlighted that the Indian council involved counts roughly 57 standardised, world-class factories among its members, underlining the scale of industrial partners potentially available for collaboration.

Azizi paired these industry-level talks with high-level meetings aimed at strengthening trade frameworks and connectivity. He held discussions with Union Minister of State for Commerce Jitin Prasada on expanding bilateral trade and removing technical barriers, and met External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to discuss transit corridors, people-to-people ties and long-term economic cooperation. The minister also led a delegation to the India International Trade Fair (IITF) 2025, meeting Neeraj Kharwal of the India Trade Promotion Organisation and engaging Indian traders, exporters and investors to explore market access, contract manufacturing and investment partnerships.

The visit, the second ministerial-level trip by the Taliban administration to India since August 2021 and following Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi’s October 2025 visit, occurred as Kabul seeks to diversify trade routes after border disruptions with Pakistan. India’s support for Afghan access via Iran’s Chabahar Port featured in discussions as a practical alternative to Pakistani transit. Beyond immediate commerce, both sides discussed Afghanistan’s vast mineral potential estimated by international assessments at over US$1 trillion and how Indian expertise and investment in responsible exploration, extraction and value-addition could generate jobs and revenue for Afghanistan while supplying India with critical minerals for industry and clean-energy needs.

Azizi’s five-day visit concluded on November 23 with both governments signalling follow-up technical visits and investor outreach to move the proposed spice, pharmaceutical and mining cooperation from discussion to implementation.