Afghanistan

total:

20.28 cu km/yr (1%/1%/98%)

per capita:

823.1 cu m/yr (2005)

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

• limited natural freshwater resources;
• inadequate supplies of potable water;
• soil degradation;
• overgrazing;
• deforestation (much of the remaining forests are being cut down for fuel and building materials);
• desertification;
• air and water pollution

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection

signed, but not ratified:

Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation

• 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

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.03 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.97 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.87 male(s)/female

total population:

1.03 male(s)/female (2013 est.)

degree of risk:

intermediate

food or waterborne diseases:

bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne disease:

malaria

animal contact disease:

rabies

note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in this country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2013)

conventional long form:

Islamic Republic of Afghanistan

conventional short form:

Afghanistan

local long form:

Jamhuri-ye Islami-ye Afghanistan

local short form:

Afghanistan

former:

Republic of Afghanistan

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)

• 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

chief of state:

• President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Hamid KARZAI (since 7 December 2004);
• First Vice President Mohammad FAHIM Khan (since 19 November 2009);
• Second Vice President Abdul Karim KHALILI (since 7 December 2004);
• note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

head of government:

• President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Hamid KARZAI (since 7 December 2004);
• First Vice President Mohammad FAHIM Khan (since 19 November 2009);
• Second Vice President Abdul Karim KHALILI (since 7 December 2004)

cabinet:

25 ministers; note - ministers are appointed by the president and approved by the National Assembly; (For more information visit theWorld Leaders website)

elections:

• the president and two vice presidents elected by direct vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term);
• if no candidate receives 50% or more of the vote in the first round of voting, the two candidates with the most votes will participate in a second round;
• election last held on 20 August 2009 (next to be held on 5 April 2014)

election results:

• Hamid KARZAI reelected president;
• percent of vote (first round) - Hamid KARZAI 49.67%, Abdullah ABDULLAH 30.59%, Ramazan BASHARDOST 10.46%, Ashraf GHANI 2.94%;
• other 6.34%;
• note - ABDULLAH conceded the election to KARZAI following the first round vote

highest court(s):

Supreme Court or Stera Mahkama (consists of the Supreme Court Chief and 8 justices organized into criminal, public security, civil, and commercial divisions or dewans)

judge selection and term of office:

court chief and justices appointed by the president with the approval of the Wolesi Jirga; court chief and justices serve single 10-year terms

subordinate courts:

• Appeals Courts;
• Primary Courts;
• Special Courts for issues including narcotics, security, property, family, and juveniles

chief of mission:

Ambassador Eklil Ahmad HAKIMI (since 16 February 2011)

chancery:

2341 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 483-6410

FAX:

[1] (202) 483-6488

consulate(s) general:

Los Angeles, New York

chief of mission:

Ambassador James B. CUNNINGHAM (since 12 August 2012)

embassy:

The Great Masood Road, Kabul

mailing address:

U.S. Embassy Kabul, APO, AE 09806

telephone:

[93] 0700 108 001

FAX:

[93] 0700 108 564

• three equal vertical bands of black (hoist side), red, and green, with the national emblem in white centered on the red band and slightly overlapping the other two bands;
• the center of the emblem features a mosque with pulpit and flags on either side, below the mosque are numerals for the solar year 1298 (1919 in the Gregorian calendar, the year of Afghan independence from the UK);
• this central image is circled by a border consisting of sheaves of wheat on the left and right, in the upper-center is an Arabic inscription of the Shahada (Muslim creed) below which are rays of the rising sun over the Takbir (Arabic expression meaning "God is great"), and at bottom center is a scroll bearing the name Afghanistan;
• black signifies the past, red is for the blood shed for independence, and green can represent either hope for the future, agricultural prosperity, or Islam

note: Afghanistan had more changes to its national flag in the 20th century than any other country; the colors black, red, and green appeared on most of them

• 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

agriculture:

78.6%

industry:

5.7%

services:

15.7% (FY08/09 est.)

lowest 10%:

3.8%

highest 10%:

24% (2008)

general assessment:

limited fixed-line telephone service; an increasing number of Afghans utilize mobile-cellular phone networks

domestic:

• aided by the presence of multiple providers, mobile-cellular telephone service continues to improve rapidly;
• the Afghan Ministry of Communications and Information claims that more than 90 percent of the population live in areas with access to mobile-cellular services

international:

country code - 93; multiple VSAT's provide international and domestic voice and data connectivity (2012)

• state-owned broadcaster, Radio Television Afghanistan (RTA), operates a series of radio and television stations in Kabul and the provinces;
• an estimated 150 private radio stations, 50 TV stations, and about a dozen international broadcasters are available (2007)

total:

42,150 km

country comparison to the world: 85

paved:

12,350 km

unpaved:

29,800 km (2006)

males age 16-49:

7,056,339

females age 16-49:

6,653,419 (2010 est.)

males age 16-49:

4,050,222

females age 16-49:

3,797,087 (2010 est.)

male:

392,116

female:

370,295 (2010 est.)

• Afghan, Coalition, and Pakistan military meet periodically to clarify the alignment of the boundary on the ground and on maps;
• Afghan and Iranian commissioners have discussed boundary monument densification and resurvey;
• Iran protests Afghanistan's restricting flow of dammed Helmand River tributaries during drought;
• Pakistan has sent troops across and built fences along some remote tribal areas of its treaty-defined Durand Line border with Afghanistan which serve as bases for foreign terrorists and other illegal activities;
• Russia remains concerned about the smuggling of poppy derivatives from Afghanistan through Central Asian countries

refugees (country of origin):

16,147 (Pakistan) (2012)

IDPs:

612,000 (mostly Pashtuns and Kuchis displaced in the south and west due to drought and instability) (2013)

current situation:

• Afghanistan is a source transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking, although domestic trafficking is more prevalent than transnational trafficking;
• Afghan men are subjected to forced labor and debt bondage in Iran, Pakistan, Greece, Turkey, and the Gulf states;
• Afghan women and girls are forced into prostitution and domestic servitude in Pakistan, Iran, and India, while women and girls from the Philippines, Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan, and China are reportedly sexually exploited in Afghanistan;
• children are increasingly subjected to forced labor in carpet-making factories, domestic servitude, forced begging, and commercial sexual exploitation;
• some children are sold to settle debts

tier rating:

• Tier 2 Watch List - Afghanistan does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking in persons;
• anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts have improved, though official complicity in human trafficking remains a problem;
• the first known convictions were made under the government's 2008 anti-trafficking law;
• Afghanistan has not developed or employed systematic procedures to identify trafficking victims or refer them to protective services and continues to rely on NGOs to provide the vast majority of victim assistance;
• the government has not made discernible progress in preventing human trafficking or protecting victims but has adopted an anti-trafficking action plan (2013)

• world's largest producer of opium;
• poppy cultivation increased 57 percent, from 115,000 hectares in 2011 to 180,000 hectares in 2012;
• despite the increase in area under cultivation, the effects of poor weather and crop disease resulted in lower yield so potential opium production remained stable at 4,300 mt in 2012 compared to 4,400 mt in 2011;
• the Taliban and other antigovernment groups participate in and profit from the opiate trade, which is a key source of revenue for the Taliban inside Afghanistan;
• widespread corruption and instability impede counterdrug efforts;
• most of the heroin consumed in Europe and Eurasia is derived from Afghan opium;
• Afghanistan is also struggling to respond to a burgeoning domestic opiate addiction problem;
• vulnerable to drug money laundering through informal financial networks;
• regional source of hashish (2013)