STORY: Afghans crack open opportunity from China-bound pine nut trade
SHOOTING TIME: June 20, 2024
DATELINE: June 26, 2024
LENGTH: 00:01:56
LOCATION: Kabul
CATEGORY: ECONOMY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of pine trees in eastern Afghanistan
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Pashto): CHIN MOHAMMAD, Farmer
3. various of pine trees in eastern Afghanistan
4. SOUNDBITE 2 (Pashto): MINA GUL, Farmer
5. various of pine nuts

STORYLINE:

Once primarily used as a source of fuel for heating homes, pine trees in eastern Afghanistan have become a cash cow for local villagers. Afghanistan's annual export of 5,000 tonnes of pine nuts is mostly destined for neighboring China.
   
Since November 2018, a China-Afghanistan air corridor has offered a lucrative source of income for farmers in Afghanistan's remote mountains. The first air shipment contained 20 tonnes of pine nuts and flew from Kabul to Shanghai.
   
Afghani farmer Chin Mohammad said six years ago that most pine nut buyers in his village were from neighboring countries. They would purchase the pine nuts at a low price and then sell them to buyers in a third country.

SOUNDBITE 1 (Pashto): CHIN MOHAMMAD, Farmer
"Since an agreement was inked with China, our income has increased because we sell the pine nuts at higher prices. Do you see the mountain? Each person in the past earned 2,000 to 3,000 afghanis (about 28 to 43 U.S. dollars), but following the agreement with China, each person earns 800 to 1,000 dollars. It means our revenue (of the whole village) reaches 600,000 to 700,000 dollars, and we can buy cereals, sugar and tea."

35-year-old farmer Mina Gul said that exporting pine nuts to China had drastically improved his living conditions.

SOUNDBITE 2 (Pashto): MINA GUL, Farmer
"No one knew about Afghan pine nuts in the past, but now they are precious nuts, and their value has increased with the huge export to China, which greatly improved our living conditions."
   
The profitable exports have allowed farmers to employ more locals. This has attracted more impoverished families to join in the pine nut business.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Kabul.
(XHTV)