It may take decades before Afghanistan's vast mineral wealth can start generating the big bucks. So in the meantime, the U.S. military is working to bolster another traditional Afghan industry: carpets.
The Pentagon and the Interior Department are about to issue a year-long, no-bid, $7 million contract to Adelphia, New Jersey's Tremayne Consulting to turn Afghanistan's storied, broken carpet business into an international powerhouse.
It's yet another sign of how deeply the American war effort is, um, interwoven with Afghanistan's economic fortunes. Army agronomists are teaching planting techniques to Afghan farmers; top NATO commander General David Petraeus is deciding how citizens of Kandahar will get their electricity; American intelligence operatives are moving to clamp down on corruption in the local government (even as the influx of international cash feeds that same corruption).
The Interior and Defense Departments announced last month that they were looking for help with the rug trade. Vendors, they said, must have at least "20 years of hands on experience in the washing and finishing of hand-knotted carpets," "demonstrable experience overhauling hand-knotted carpet sectors in post conflict regions," and a "minimum of 50 business relationships with high-end retailers in Europe and North America."
Apparently, Tremayne, the New Jersey company, was the only outfit that fit the bill. "Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements," the departments announced on Wednesday.
"The Afghan carpet industry requires essential training and know-how development in the field of carpet washing and finishing - an essential element of the value chain of any high-end, hand-woven carpet." Tremayne is there to "operationalize the effort."
Tremayne will also be responsible for landing 15 Afghan suppliers and finding three shipping routes out of Afghanistan that are "commercially viable (i.e., reasonably secure and consistent)." Once those routes are scoped out, Tremayne is supposed to put together an international sales hub in Istanbul, secure "commitments from a minimum of 5 major institutional buyers," and start building "a market for the Afghan brand" with "strategic marketing & public relations."
Afghanistan may never become the "Saudi Arabia of Lithium." But the effort to stitch its carpet trade back together starts August 1st.
Photo: Denison University
See Also:
- Afghanistan 3.0: Like It or Not, It's Nation-Building
- How Much Cash Have We Wasted in Afghanistan?
- Army Farmers Work to Regrow Afghanistan
- U.S. Nonprofit Screws up Iraq Jobs Program, Now Working on ...
- Army: Battle Taliban With… Saffron?
- Afghan Hash Bust Underscores Official Corruption
- Job One: Petraeus Squashes Beef Over Kandahar's Grid
