Afghanistan

agricultural land:

58.07%;

• arable land 20.5%;
• permanent crops 0.37%;
• permanent pasture 79%

forest:

2.07%

other:

39.86% (2014 est.)

• 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

• 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

• 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

15-24 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:

0.86 male(s)/female

total population:

1.03 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

degree of risk:

intermediate

food or waterborne diseases:

bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne disease:

malaria (2016)

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

etymology:

• the name "Afghan" originally referred to the Pashtun people (today it is understood to include all the country's ethnic groups), while 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)

• 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

history:

several previous; latest drafted 14 December 2003 - 4 January 2004, signed 16 January 2004, ratified 26 January 2004

amendments:

• proposed by a commission formed by presidential decree followed by the convention of a Grand Council (Loya Jirga) decreed by the president;
• passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote of the Loya Jirga membership and endorsement by the president (2017)

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:

• President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Ashraf GHANI Ahmadzai (since 29 September 2014);
• CEO Abdullah ABDULLAH (since 29 September 2014);
• First Vice President Abdul Rashid DOSTAM (since 29 September 2014);
• Second Vice President Sarwar DANESH (since 29 September 2014);
• note - the president is both chief of state and head of government

head of government:

• President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Ashraf GHANI Ahmadzai (since 29 September 2014 );
• CEO Abdullah ABDULLAH (since 29 September 2014);
• First Vice President Abdul Rashid DOSTAM (since 29 September 2014);
• Second Vice President Sarwar DANESH (since 29 September 2014)

cabinet:

Cabinet consists of 26 ministers appointed by the president, approved by the National Assembly

elections/appointments:

• president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term);
• election last held in 2 rounds on 5 April and 14 June 2014 (next to be held in 2018)

election results:

• percent of vote in first round - Abdullah ABDULLAH (National Coalition of Afghanistan) 45%, Ashraf GHANI (independent) 31.6%, Zalmai RASSOUL 11.4%, other 12%;
• percent of vote in second round - Ashraf GHANI 56.4%, Abdullah ABDULLAH 43.6%

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 Hamdullah MOHIB (since 17 September 2015)

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, Washington, DC

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Special Charge d'Affaires Hugo LLORENS (since December 2016)

embassy:

Bibi Mahru, Kabul

mailing address:

U.S. Embassy Kabul, APO, AE 09806

telephone:

[00 93] 0700 108 001

FAX:

[00 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 2 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 - 19 by one count - than any other country; the colors black, red, and green appeared on most of them

name:

"Milli Surood" (National Anthem)

lyrics/music:

Abdul Bari JAHANI/Babrak WASA

note: adopted 2006; the 2004 constitution of the post-Taliban government mandated that a new national anthem should be written containing the phrase "Allahu Akbar" (God is Greatest) and mentioning the names of Afghanistan's ethnic groups

• 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 (2016)

• 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)

number of registered air carriers:

4; inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 20

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

1,929,907

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

33,102,038 mt-km (2015)

total:

42,150 km

paved:

12,350 km

unpaved:

29,800 km (2006)

country comparison to the world: 86

• Afghan, Coalition, and Pakistan military meet periodically to clarify the alignment of the boundary on the ground and on maps and since 2014 have met to discuss collaboration on the Taliban insurgency and counterterrorism efforts;
• 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):

59,737 (Pakistan) (2016)

IDPs:

1.553 million (mostly Pashtuns and Kuchis displaced in the south and west due to natural disasters and political instability) (2016)

• world's largest producer of opium;
• poppy cultivation increased 10 percent, to 201,000 hectares in 2016, while eradication declined significantly;
• the 2016 crop yielded an estimated 4,800 mt of raw opium, a 43% increase over 2015;
• 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;
• a 2015 national drug use survey found that roughly 11% of the population tested positive for one or more illicit drugs;
• vulnerable to drug money laundering through informal financial networks;
• illicit cultivation of cannabis and regional source of hashish