The Economic Affairs Office of the Islamic Emirate’s Prime Ministry announced the inauguration of a state-of-the-art laboratory for testing and assessing the quality of food, pharmaceuticals, and health products in western Herat province.
Kabul 24: The facility was officially opened in a ceremony attended by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, and Mawlawi Abdul Salam Hanafi, Deputy Prime Minister for Administrative Affairs.
Speaking at the inauguration, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar emphasized the vital need to uphold national health standards, stating that all imported food items, pharmaceutical drugs, and medical supplies arriving from neighboring countries and broader international markets will now undergo rigorous scientific evaluation at this center.
He stressed that the laboratory’s establishment marks a decisive step toward eliminating the influx of low-quality, counterfeit, and substandard goods into domestic markets.
Positioned in the key border province of Herat—a major commercial and transit gateway for Afghanistan—the facility will play a central role in monitoring incoming commercial freight.
Previously, the lack of fully equipped laboratory infrastructure at border points created significant hurdles in verifying the safety of consumer goods, posing public health risks due to unvetted imports.
The operation of this testing center is expected to raise national standards for food and drug safety, build consumer trust through transparent regulation, and streamline legal trade processes.
The leadership of the Islamic Emirate aims to replicate such infrastructure across other border regions to safeguard public health against hazardous and sub-standard imports nationwide.
