HERAT, Afghanistan — In a milestone for the local textile industry, Afghanistan has successfully exported its first major commercial shipment of women’s clothing from western Herat province to Iraq.
The shipment, consisting of 20,000 sets of women’s apparel valued at $100,000, was officially dispatched on Sunday, May 10.
Azizullah Norzai, the head of the manufacturing company responsible for the garments, stated that local production workshops in Herat produced the high-quality order in a span of just 20 days.
Expanding Market Horizons
The transaction was facilitated by Javad Hakimi, an Iranian trader who purchased the consignment for export to the Iraqi market. Following the successful dispatch, Hakimi revealed plans for an upcoming, significantly larger shipment.”
We are already preparing a second convoy to Iraq,” Hakimi said. “The next shipment will consist of 200,000 clothing sets with a total market value of $1 million.”
According to the trader, there is a strong and growing demand in Iraq for the quality of apparel produced in Afghanistan, which prompted the establishment of this new export pipeline.
A Boost for Local Industry
Abdul Qadir Akbari, the head of the Herat Chamber of Craftsmen and Artisans, confirmed that this marks the first large-scale clothing export from the province to Iraq.
While smaller, limited batches of garments from Herat’s workshops have previously reached European and American markets, Akbari emphasized that this is the first time a bulk commercial consignment of this magnitude has been sent to Iraq.
Akbari added that the domestic manufacturing sector has experienced a qualitative upgrade. Thanks to a growing pool of specialized and skilled laborers, Herat’s factories are now fully capable of exporting locally produced bags and shoes to international markets as well.
