Afghanistan

Indian Ocean drainage:

Indus (1,081,718 sq km)

Internal (endorheic basin) drainage:

Amu Darya (534,739 sq km); Tarim Basin (1,152,448 sq km)

• populations tend to cluster in the foothills and periphery of the rugged Hindu Kush range;
• smaller groups are found in many of the country's interior valleys;
• in general, the east is more densely settled, while the south is sparsely populated

• damaging earthquakes occur in Hindu Kush mountains;
• flooding;
• droughts

• landlocked;
• the Hindu Kush mountains that run northeast to southwest divide the northern provinces from the rest of the country;
• the highest peaks are in the northern Vakhan (Wakhan Corridor)

noun:

Afghan(s)

adjective:

Afghan

• current, reliable statistical data on ethnicity in Afghanistan are not available;
• Afghanistan's 2004 Constitution cited Pashtun, Tajik, Hazara, Uzbek, Turkman, Baluch, Pashaie, Nuristani, Aymaq, Arab, Qirghiz, Qizilbash, Gujur, and Brahwui ethnicities;
• Afghanistan has dozens of other small ethnic groups

total:

18.4 years (2025 est.)

male:

20 years

female:

20.1 years

• populations tend to cluster in the foothills and periphery of the rugged Hindu Kush range;
• smaller groups are found in many of the country's interior valleys;
• in general, the east is more densely settled, while the south is sparsely populated

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.03 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

1.03 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.85 male(s)/female

total population:

1.02 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

total:

42 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)

male:

109.7 deaths/1,000 live births

female:

92.5 deaths/1,000 live births

total population:

54.4 years (2024 est.)

male:

52.8 years

female:

56.1 years

total:

0.01 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

beer:

0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

wine:

0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

spirits:

0.01 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

other alcohols:

0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

total:

20.8% (2025 est.)

male:

36.5% (2025 est.)

female:

5.2% (2025 est.)

women married by age 15:

9.6% (2023)

women married by age 18:

28.7% (2023)

men married by age 18:

7.3% (2015)

total population:

37.3% (2021 est.)

male:

52.1% (2021 est.)

female:

26.6% (2022 est.)

• limited natural freshwater resources;
• inadequate potable water;
• soil degradation;
• overgrazing;
• deforestation (cut down for fuel and building materials);
• desertification;
• air and water pollution in urban areas

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection

signed, but not ratified:

Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation

urban population:

26.9% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization:

3.34% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

municipal solid waste generated annually:

5.629 million tons (2024 est.)

percent of municipal solid waste recycled:

11.1% (2022 est.)

municipal:

203.4 million cubic meters (2022 est.)

industrial:

169.5 million cubic meters (2022 est.)

agricultural:

20 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)

conventional long form:

Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (prior to 15 August 2021); current country name disputed

conventional short form:

Afghanistan

local long form:

Jamhuri-ye Islami-ye Afghanistan (prior to 15 August 2021; current country name is disputed)

local short form:

Afghanistan

etymology:

• the name "Afghan" originally referred to the Pashtun people, but today it is understood to include all the country's ethnic groups;
• the suffix "-stan" means "place of" or "country," so Afghanistan literally means the "Land of the Afghans"

name:

Kabul

geographic coordinates:

34 31 N, 69 11 E

time difference:

UTC+4.5 (9.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

does not observe daylight savings time

etymology:

named for the Kabul River, but the river's name is of unknown origin

• 34 provinces ( welayat , singular - welayat );
• Badakhshan, Badghis, Baghlan, Balkh, Bamyan, Daykundi, Farah, Faryab, Ghazni, Ghor, Helmand, Herat, Jowzjan, Kabul, Kandahar, Kapisa, Khost, Kunar, Kunduz, Laghman, Logar, Nangarhar, Nimroz, Nuristan, Paktika, Paktiya, Panjshir, Parwan, Samangan, Sar-e Pul, Takhar, Uruzgan, Wardak, Zabul

• the Taliban is implementing its own interpretation of Islamic law, which is partially based on the Hanifi school of Islamic jurisprudence and have enforced strict punishments;
• before the Taliban takeover, Afghanistan had a mixed legal system of civil, customary, and Islamic law (2021)

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must have been born in - and continuously lived in - Afghanistan

dual citizenship recognized:

no

residency requirement for naturalization:

5 years

chief of state:

Taliban Leader HAYBATULLAH Akhundzada (since 15 August 2021)

head of government:

overall Taliban Leader HAYBATULLAH Akhundzada is the [so-called] Amir-ul Momineen of the Taliban and is effectively the head of government

cabinet:

the Taliban have announced a “cabinet” for the “caretaker government,” including the “acting prime minister,” “acting deputy prime ministers,” and “ministers” who claim to represent 26 ministries

election/appointment process:

• the 2004 Afghan constitution directed that the president should be elected by majority popular vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term);
• the Taliban have given no indication that they intend to reinstate elections or any other mechanism of democratic governance

most recent election date:

28 September 2019

note: the United States has not yet made a decision whether to recognize the Taliban or any other entity as the government of Afghanistan

highest court(s):

the Taliban are purported to have appointed clerics, including a "Chief Justice," to Afghanistan's Supreme Court

subordinate courts:

provincial courts, religious courts, and specialty courts

description:

• three equal vertical bands of black (left), red, and green, with the national emblem in white centered on the red band and slightly overlapping the other bands;
• the emblem shows a mosque with a pulpit and flags on either side;
• below the mosque are Eastern Arabic numerals for the solar year 1298 (1919 in the Gregorian calendar, the year of Afghan independence from the UK);
• a border of wheat sheaves circles the mosque;
• above the mosque is an Arabic inscription of the Shahada (Muslim creed), with rays of the rising sun over the Takbir (Arabic expression meaning "God is great");
• under the mosque is a scroll with the name Afghanistan

meaning:

black stands for the past, and red for the blood shed for independence; green can represent hope for the future, agricultural prosperity, or Islam

history:

• Afghanistan had more changes to its national flag in the 20th century -- 19 by one count -- than any other country;
• the colors black, red, and green appeared on most of them

note: the United States has not recognized the Taliban or any other entity as the government of Afghanistan and, accordingly, continues to display the flag of Afghanistan as set forth in the country's constitution of 2004

title:

"Milli Surood" (National Anthem)

lyrics/music:

Abdul Bari JAHANI/Babrak WASA

history:

adopted 2006

total World Heritage Sites:

2 (both cultural)

selected World Heritage Site locales:

Minaret of Jam; Buddhas of Bamyan

note: the monumental 6th- and 7th-century Buddha statues at Bamyan were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001

• low-income South Asian economy;
• economy stable after major contraction due to Taliban takeover, but recovery remains fragile;
• widespread poverty and obstacles to human development;
• import-reliant for food, fuel, and machinery;
• ongoing sanctions, suspended development aid, and frozen reserve assets

agriculture:

34.7% (2023 est.)

industry:

13.4% (2023 est.)

services:

46.4% (2023 est.)

note: figures may not total 100% due to non-allocated consumption not captured in sector-reported data

• small-scale production of bricks, textiles, soap, furniture, shoes, fertilizer, apparel, food products, non-alcoholic beverages, mineral water, cement;
• handwoven carpets;
• natural gas, coal, copper

total:

16.7% (2024 est.)

male:

15.8% (2024 est.)

female:

27% (2024 est.)

note: % of labor force ages 15-24 seeking employment

production:

767,000 metric tons (2023 est.)

consumption:

503,000 metric tons (2023 est.)

exports:

265,000 metric tons (2023 est.)

imports:

2,000 metric tons (2023 est.)

proven reserves:

66 million metric tons (2023 est.)

production:

80.2 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

consumption:

80.2 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

proven reserves:

49.554 billion cubic meters (2021 est.)

total subscriptions:

182,000 (2023 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants:

(2023 est.) less than 1

• under the Taliban, independent media outlets have decreased and are probably self-censoring;
• the Ministry of Information and Culture monitors all mass media;
• television and radio are key media platforms;
• only about a fifth of Afghans use the internet, mostly through smartphones (2023)

total:

33,000 (2023 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants:

(2023 est.) less than 1

• the Taliban claims authority over a Ministry of Defense and a National Army (aka Army of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Islamic Emirate Army, or Afghan Army);
• it has also formed police forces under a Ministry of Interior (2025)

• the Taliban’s key security priorities are border and internal security;
• specific issues have included tensions with Pakistan along their shared border, armed anti-Taliban resistance elements, and the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham - Khorasan (ISIS-K) terrorist group (2025)

• Haqqani Network;
• Harakat ul-Mujahidin;
• Harakat ul-Jihad-i-Islami;
• Islamic Jihad Union (IJU);
• Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU);
• Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham-Khorasan Province (ISIS-K);
• Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)/Qods Force;
• Jaish-e-Mohammed;
• Jaysh al Adl (Jundallah);
• Lashkar i Jhangvi;
• Lashkar-e Tayyiba;
• al-Qa’ida;
• al-Qa'ida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS);
• Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)

note 1: as of 2024, Afghanistan was assessed to be a place of global significance for terrorism, with approximately 20 designated and non-designated terrorist groups operating in the country

note 2: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in the Terrorism reference guide

refugees:

21,236 (2024 est.)

IDPs:

5,457,183 (2024 est.)

tier rating:

• Tier 3 — Afghanistan does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Afghanistan remained on Tier 3;
• for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2025-trafficking-in-persons-report/afghanistan/