Economy of Afghanistan
Encyclopedia
The economy of Afghanistan has improved significantly since 2002 due to the infusion of multi-billion dollars in international assistance and investments, as well as remittances from Afghan expats
. It is also due to dramatic improvements in agricultural production and the end of a four-year drought in most of the country. However, Afghanistan
still remains one of the poorest and least developed countries in the world that is highly dependent on foreign aid. The nation's GDP
stands at about $27 billion with an exchange rate of $15 billion, and the GDP per capita is about $900.
About 35 percent of its population is unemployed and live below the poverty line
, suffering from shortages of housing, clean drinking water, electricity and employment. The Karzai administration
along with international donors have remained committed to improving access to these basic necessities by prioritizing infrastructure development, education, housing development, jobs programs, medical care, and economic reform. The replacement of the opium trade
, which probably makes up about one-third of the country's GDP, is one of several potential spoilers for the economy over the long term.
The 1979 Soviet invasion
and ensuing civil war
destroyed much of the country's limited infrastructure, and disrupted normal patterns of economic activity. Eventually, Afghanistan went from a traditional economy
to a centrally planned economy
up until 2002 when it was replaced by a free market economy. Gross domestic product has fallen substantially since the 1980s due to disruption of trade and transport as well as loss of labor and capital. Continuing internal strife severely hampered domestic efforts to rebuild the nation or provide ways for the international community to help.
According to the International Monetary Fund
, the Afghan economy grew 20% in the fiscal year ending in March 2004, after expanding 30% in the previous 12 months. The growth is attributed to international aid and to the end of drought
s. An estimated $4.4 billion of aid entered the nation from 2002 to 2004. A GDP of $4 billion in fiscal year 2003 was recalculated by the IMF to $6.1 billion, after adding proceeds from opium
products. Mean graduate pay was $0.56 per manhour in 2010.
production is constrained by an almost total dependence on erratic winter snows and spring rains for water. As of 2007, the country's fruit
and nut
exports were at $113 million per year but could grow to more than $800 million per year in 10 years given the proper investment. Afghanistan is known for producing some of the finest fruits, especially pomegranate
s, apricot
s, grape
s, melon
s, and mullberry. Several provinces in the north of the country (i.e. Badghis
and Samangan
) are famous for pistachio
cultivation but the area currently lacks proper marketing and processing plants. It is claimed that some Indian companies buy Afghan pistachios for a very low price, process them in India
and sell to western countries as Indian products. However, the Afghan government is planning to build storage facilities for pistachios since receiving bumper crops in 2010.
Wheat
and cereal
production is Afghanistan's traditional agricultural mainstay. The overall agricultural production dramatically declined following four years of drought as well as the sustained fighting and instability in rural areas. Soviet efforts to disrupt production in resistance-dominated areas also contributed to this decline, as did the disruption to trince 2002, more than 4 million refugees returned to Afghanistan. Many of these former refugees are now involved in the farming industry. Some studies indicate that agricultural production and livestock numbers may only be sufficient to feed about half of the country's population. Shortages are exacerbated by the country's limited transportation network, which is currently being rebuilt. A report by the Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO) states that Afghanistan was nearing self-sufficiency in grain production.
The availability of land suitable for grazing has traditionally made animal husbandry
an important part of the economy. There are two main types of animal husbandry: sedentary, practiced by farmers who raise both animals and crops; and nomadic, practiced by animal herders known as Kuchis. Natural pastures cover some 7500000 acres (30,351.5 km²) but are being overgrazed. The northern regions around Mazar-i-Sharif and Maymanah were the home range for about six million karakul sheep in the late 1990s. Most flocks move to the highlands in the summer to pastures in the north. Oxen are the primary draft power and farmers often share animals for plowing. Poultry
are traditionally kept in many houses, mostly in rural households.
Much of Afghanistan's livestock was removed from the country by early waves of refugees who fled to neighboring Pakistan and Iran. In 2001, the livestock population in Afghanistan had declined by about 40% since 1998. In 2002, this figure was estimated to have declined further to 60%. An FAO survey done in the northern regions in spring 2002 showed that in four provinces (Balkh
, Juzjan, Sar-e Pol
, and Faryab), there was a loss of about 84% of cattle
from 1997 to 2002 and around 80% of sheep and goat
. The great majority of Afghans traditionally raise sheep instead of goats because goat meat is not much popular within Afghanistan. After 200, the Afghan ministry of agriculture and livestock and USAID have been helping to regrow the number of livestocks throughout the country. This is done by providing Afghan villagers training and animals to start with.
. Fishing
takes place in the lakes and rivers, such as in Sarobi and Mahipar area. Fish
constitute a smaller part of the Afghan diet today because fish farmers are unable to produce enough fish to keep up with the demands of customers. Using explosives for fishing, called dynamite fishing, became popular in the 1980s and is still practiced by some even though it is illegal today. The annual catch was about 900 tons in 2003. Most fish and seafood
is imported from neighboring Pakistan, Iran, the United Arab Emirates
and other countries. In recent years, USAID has helped many Afghans in establishing fish farms across the country. There are about 300 fish farms throughout the country and the largest one is at the Qargha, which supplies fish eggs to the other ones.
has been greatly depleted, and since the mid-1980s, only about 3% of the land area has been forested, mainly in the east. Significant stands of trees have been destroyed by the ravages of the war. Exploitation has been hampered by lack of power and access roads. Moreover, the distribution of the forest is uneven, and most of the remaining woodland is presently found only in mountainous regions in the southeast and south. The natural forests in Afghanistan are mainly of two types: dense forests of oak
, walnut
, and other species of nuts that grow in the southeast, and on the northern and northeastern slopes of the Sulaiman ranges; and sparsely distributed short trees and shrubs on all other slopes of the Hindu Kush
. The dense forests of the southeast cover only 2.7% of the country. Roundwood
production in 2003 was 3,148,000 cubic metres, with 44% used for fuel
. The destruction of the forests to create agricultural land, logging
, forest fires, plant diseases, and insect
pests are all causes of the reduction in forest coverage. Illegal logging and clear-cutting by timber smugglers have exacerbated this destructive process.
The current trade between Afghanistan and other countries is at US$5 billion a year. In 1996, legal exports (excluding opium) were estimated at $80 million and imports estimated at $150 million per year. Since the collapse of the Taliban government in 2001, new trade relations are emerging with the United States, Pakistan, Iran, Turkmenistan, the EU, Japan, Uzbekistan, India and other countries. Trade between Afghanistan and the U.S. is beginning to grow at a fast pace, reaching up to approximately $500 million per year. The Afghan handwooven rugs
are one of the most popular products exported from the country. Other products include hand crafted antique replicas as well as leather and furs.
Afghanistan is endowed with a wealth of natural resources, including extensive deposits of natural gas
, petroleum
, coal
, marble
, gold
, copper
, chromite
, talc
, barites, sulfur
, lead
, zinc
, iron ore, salt
, precious and semi-precious stones, and many rare earth element
s. In 2006, a U.S. Geological Survey estimated that Afghanistan has as much as 36 Tcuft of natural gas, 3.6 Goilbbl of oil and condensate reserves. According to a 2007 assessment, Afghanistan has significant amounts of undiscovered non-fuel mineral resources. Geologists also found indications of abundant deposits of colored stones and gemstones, including emerald
, ruby
, sapphire
, garnet
, lapis, kunzite, spinel
, tourmaline
and peridot
. In 2010, U.S. Pentagon
officials along with American geologists have revealed the discovery of nearly $1 trillion in untapped mineral deposits in Afghanistan. Plans are being made by the Afghan government to begin extracting these but with the Taliban insurgency
and the corruption there is no telling what will happen.
A memo from the Pentagon stated that Afghanistan could become the "Saudi Arabia of lithium
". Some believe, including Afghan President Hamid Karzai
, that the untapped minerals are worth at least $3 trillion. Another US Geological Survey estimate from September 2011 shows that the Khanashin carbonatites in the Helmand Province
of the country have an estimated 1 million metric tonnes of rare earth element
s. Regina Dubey, Acting Director for the Department of Defence Task Force for Business and Stability Operations (TFBSO) stated that "this is just one more piece of evidence that Afghanistan's mineral sector has a bright future."
Afghanistan has signed a copper deal with China
(Metallurgical Corp. of China Ltd.) in 2008, which is to a large scale project that involves the investment of $2.8 billion dollars by China and an annual income of about $400 million dollars to the Afghan government. The country's Ainak copper mine, located in Logar province
, is one of the biggest in the world and is expected to provide jobs to 20,000 Afghans. It is estimated to hold at least 11 million tonnes or 33 billion US dollars worth of copper. Experts believe that the production of copper could begin within two to three years and the iron ore in five to seven years as of 2010. The nation's other recently announced treasure is the Hajigak iron ore mine, located 130 miles west of Kabul and is believed to hold an estimated 1.8 billion to 2 billion metric tons of the mineral used to make steel. Companies from India, Turkey, China, Iran and others have shown interest in participating in the Hajigak iron ore tender.
Afghanistan's important resource in the past has been natural gas, which was first tapped in 1967. During the 1980s, gas sales accounted for $300 million a year in export revenues (56% of the total). Ninety percent of these exports went to the Soviet Union
to pay for imports and debts. However, during the withdrawal of Soviet troops in 1989, Afghanistan's natural gas fields were capped to prevent sabotage by the Mujahideen
. Gas production has dropped from a high of 8.2 million cubic metres per day in the 1980s to a low of about 600 thousand cubic meters in 2001. After the formation of the new Karzai administration
, production of natural gas has been restored again. A locally owned company, Azizi Hotak General Trading Group, is currently the main supplier of diesel fuel, gasoline
, jet fuel
and LPG in Afghanistan.
Trade in goods smuggled into Pakistan once constituted a major source of revenue for Afghanistan. Many of the goods that were smuggled into Pakistan have originally entered Afghanistan from Pakistan, where they fell under the Afghan Trade and Transit Agreement (ATTA). This permitted goods bound for Afghanistan to transit through Pakistan free of duty
. This resulted in considerable problems for the Pakistani government, particularly its customs bureau who realized that many of the items being resold on the black market in Pakistan were the very same items being allowed duty free exemption from Pakistani ports (mainly Karachi
) on their way to Afghanistan. When Pakistan clamped down in 2003 on the types of goods permitted duty-free transit, and introducing stringent measures and labels to prevent such practices, re-routing of goods through Iran from the Persian Gulf
increased significantly. The pre-2003 smuggling trade provided undocumented jobs to tens of thousands of Afghans and Pakistanis, but also helped fuel the black economy, often intertwined with the drug cartels, of both countries. Afghanistan and Pakistan recently signed into law a new Afghan-Pak Trade and Transit Agreement (APTTA), which allows their shipping truck
s to transit goods within both nations. This revised US-sponsored APTTA agreement also allows Afghan trucks to transport exports to India via Pakistan through the Wagah
crossing point. According to Afghanistan's Chamber of Commerce and Industries deputy head, Khan Jan Alokozai, about 500 shipping container
s of trade goods enter Afghanistan via Pakistan on a daily basis.
Afghanistan embarked on a modest economic development program in the 1930s. The government founded banks; introduced paper money; established a university; expanded primary, secondary, and technical schools; and sent students abroad for education. In 1956, the government of Afghanistan promulgated the first in a long series of ambitious development plans. By the late 1970s, these had achieved only mixed results due to flaws in the planning process as well as inadequate funding and a shortage of the skilled managers and technicians needed for implementation.
The nation's banking system has improved recently with over fourteen different banks in operation. They include Da Afghanistan Bank
, Afghanistan International Bank
, Azizi Bank
, Kabul Bank
, Pashtany Bank
, Standard Chartered Bank
, First Micro Finance Bank
, and others. In 2010, Kabul Bank became in financial crisis after depositors had withdrawn $180 million. A new law on private investment provides three to seven-year tax holiday
s to eligible companies and a four-year exemption from exports tariff
s and duties. As a result of the new banks in the country, Afghan expats are sending more money back home to their family or relatives. According to a UN report in 2007, Afghanistan has received over $3.3 billion from its expatriate community in 2006. UN officials familiar with the issue said remittances to Afghanistan could have been more if the banking regulations are more convenient.
Kabul symbolizes the spirits of all Afghans and international cooperation, sets at the heart of this highly resourceful region, with great potential to turn into a business hub. After 2002, the new geo-political dynamics and its subsequent business opportunities, rapid urban population growth and emergence of high unemployment, triggered the planning of urban extension towards the immediate north of Kabul, in the form of a new city.
In 2006, President Hamid Karzai
established and Independent Board for the Development of Kabul New City. The Board brings together key stakeholders, including relevant government agencies, as well as representation from private sector and urban specialists and economists, with cooperation from the government of Japan
and French private sector, the board prepared a master plan for the city in the context of Greater Kabul. The master plan and its implementation strategy for 2025 were endorsed by the Afghan Cabinet in early 2009. The initiative turned into one of the biggest commercially viable national development project of the country, expected to be led by the private sector.
In the meantime, a number of high rise buildings are being planned and constructed across Kabul, as part of the attempt to modernize the city and create jobs. An initial concept design called the City of Light Development
, envisioned by Hisham N. Ashkouri
, for the development and the implementation of a privately based investment enterprise has been proposed for a multi-function commercial, historic and cultural development within the limits of the Old City of Kabul, along the southern side of the Kabul River
and along Jade Meywand Avenue. It is expected to revitalize some of the most commercial and historic districts in the City of Kabul, which will contain numerous historic mosques and shrines as well as viable commercial activities among and within war-damaged buildings. Also incorporated in the design is a new complex for a new Afghan National Museum. The design has garnered interest from President Hamid Karzai
, and has support from Ambassador Said Tayeb Jawad
, who signed a Memo of Understanding regarding the development.
Since its inception in 1991, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
to Afghanistan has channelled more than $1 billion in multilateral assistance to Afghan refugees and vulnerable persons inside Afghanistan. The United States, the European Union (EU), and Japan are the leading contributors to this relief effort. One of its key tasks is to eliminate from priority areas—such as villages, arable fields, and roads—some of the 5 to 7 million land mines and 750,000 pieces of unexploded ordnance
, sown mainly during the Soviet occupation, which continue to litter the Afghan landscape. Afghanistan is still a heavily mined country; mine-related injuries number about 60 per-month. Without successful mine clearance, refugee repatriation, political stability, and economic reconstruction
will be severely constrained.
Since 2001, the international community has pledged $25 billion in help but has delivered only $15 billion as of 2008. The reconstruction of Afghanistan requires a sustained and substantial commitment of aid. Too much money meant for Afghanistan aid is wasted, with a vast amount spent on foreign workers' high salaries, security and living arrangements.
GDP
: purchasing power parity - $27.36 billion (2010 est.), with an exchange rate at $15.61 billion (2010 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $900 (2010)
GDP - composition by sector:
note: data excludes opium production
Population below poverty line:
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 0.9% (2009)
country comparison to the world: 19
Labor force: 15 million (2004)
country comparison to the world: 39
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 78.6%, industry 5.7%, services 15.7% (2009)
Unemployment rate: 35% (2009)
country comparison to the world: 180
Budget:
Industries: small-scale production of textile
s, soap
, furniture
, shoe
s, fertilizer
, apparel, food-product
s, non-alcoholic beverages, mineral water
, cement
; handwoven carpets; natural gas
, coal
, copper
Electricity
- production: 285.5 million kWh (2009)
country comparison to the world: 169
Electricity - production by source:
Electricity - consumption: 231.1 million kWh (2009)
country comparison to the world: 137
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2007)
Electricity - imports: 120 million kWh (2008)
Oil - production: 0 oilbbl/d (2003)
country comparison to the world: 210
Oil - consumption: 5036 oilbbl/d (2006)
country comparison to the world: 165
Oil - proved reserves: 1600000000 barrels (254,379,672,000 l) (2006)
Natural gas - production: 220 million m³ (2001)
Natural gas - consumption: 220 million m³ (2001)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 15.7 trillion cubic feet (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products: opium poppies, wheat, fruits, nuts
, karakul
pelts
Exports: $547 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 164
Exports - commodities: opium, fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets, wool
, cotton
, hides
and pelts, precious and semi-precious stones
Exports - partners: Pakistan 25.9%, India 25.5%, United States 14.9%, Tajikistan 9.6%, Germany 5% (2010)
Imports: $5.3 billion (2008)
Imports - commodities: capital goods, food, textiles and petroleum products
Imports - partners: United States 29.1%, Pakistan 23.3%, India 7.6%, Russia 4.5%, Germany 4.2% (2010)
Debt - external: $2.3 billion total (2011)
Current account balance: - $67 million (2007)
country comparison to the world: 79
Currency: Afghani
(AFN)
Exchange rates: afghanis (AFA) per US dollar - 46 = $1
Fiscal year: 21 March - 21 March
Afghan diaspora
Afghan diaspora or Afghan immigrants are citizens of Afghanistan who have emigrated to other countries, or people of Afghan origin who are born outside Afghanistan.-List of countries:...
. It is also due to dramatic improvements in agricultural production and the end of a four-year drought in most of the country. However, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
still remains one of the poorest and least developed countries in the world that is highly dependent on foreign aid. The nation's GDP
Gross domestic product
Gross domestic product refers to the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living....
stands at about $27 billion with an exchange rate of $15 billion, and the GDP per capita is about $900.
About 35 percent of its population is unemployed and live below the poverty line
Poverty threshold
The poverty threshold, or poverty line, is the minimum level of income deemed necessary to achieve an adequate standard of living in a given country...
, suffering from shortages of housing, clean drinking water, electricity and employment. The Karzai administration
Karzai administration
The Karzai administration is the official government of Afghanistan under President Hamid Karzai, who became the head of state of Afghanistan in December 2001, after the Taliban government was removed. He was appointed at the 2002 Loya Jirga as the Interim President of the Afghan Transitional...
along with international donors have remained committed to improving access to these basic necessities by prioritizing infrastructure development, education, housing development, jobs programs, medical care, and economic reform. The replacement of the opium trade
Opium production in Afghanistan
Afghanistan has been the greatest illicit opium producer in the entire world, ahead of Burma and the "Golden Triangle" since 1992, excluding the year 2001. Afghanistan is the main producer of opium in the "Golden Crescent". Opium production in Afghanistan has been on the rise since U.S....
, which probably makes up about one-third of the country's GDP, is one of several potential spoilers for the economy over the long term.
Economic history
Historically, there has been a dearth of information and reliable statistics about Afghanistan's economy.The 1979 Soviet invasion
Soviet war in Afghanistan
The Soviet war in Afghanistan was a nine-year conflict involving the Soviet Union, supporting the Marxist-Leninist government of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan against the Afghan Mujahideen and foreign "Arab–Afghan" volunteers...
and ensuing civil war
Civil war in Afghanistan
The Afghan civil war began when the communist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan took power in a military coup, known as the Saur Revolution, on 27 April 1978. Most of Afghanistan subsequently experienced uprisings against the unpopular Marxist-Leninist PDPA government. The Soviet Union...
destroyed much of the country's limited infrastructure, and disrupted normal patterns of economic activity. Eventually, Afghanistan went from a traditional economy
Traditional economy
Traditional economy is a catching-all term normally used to describe economic systems that pertain in societies with extensive subsistence agriculture. The term may also be used for any economy that falls outside of popular notions of market and command economies...
to a centrally planned economy
Planned economy
A planned economy is an economic system in which decisions regarding production and investment are embodied in a plan formulated by a central authority, usually by a government agency...
up until 2002 when it was replaced by a free market economy. Gross domestic product has fallen substantially since the 1980s due to disruption of trade and transport as well as loss of labor and capital. Continuing internal strife severely hampered domestic efforts to rebuild the nation or provide ways for the international community to help.
According to the International Monetary Fund
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
, the Afghan economy grew 20% in the fiscal year ending in March 2004, after expanding 30% in the previous 12 months. The growth is attributed to international aid and to the end of drought
Drought
A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
s. An estimated $4.4 billion of aid entered the nation from 2002 to 2004. A GDP of $4 billion in fiscal year 2003 was recalculated by the IMF to $6.1 billion, after adding proceeds from opium
Opium
Opium is the dried latex obtained from the opium poppy . Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an alkaloid, which is frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine...
products. Mean graduate pay was $0.56 per manhour in 2010.
Agriculture and livestock
The Afghan economy has always been agricultural, despite the fact that only 12% of its total land is arable and less than 6% currently is cultivated. AgricultureAgriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
production is constrained by an almost total dependence on erratic winter snows and spring rains for water. As of 2007, the country's fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
and nut
Nut (fruit)
A nut is a hard-shelled fruit of some plants having an indehiscent seed. While a wide variety of dried seeds and fruits are called nuts in English, only a certain number of them are considered by biologists to be true nuts...
exports were at $113 million per year but could grow to more than $800 million per year in 10 years given the proper investment. Afghanistan is known for producing some of the finest fruits, especially pomegranate
Pomegranate
The pomegranate , Punica granatum, is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub or small tree growing between five and eight meters tall.Native to the area of modern day Iran, the pomegranate has been cultivated in the Caucasus since ancient times. From there it spread to Asian areas such as the Caucasus as...
s, apricot
Apricot
The apricot, Prunus armeniaca, is a species of Prunus, classified with the plum in the subgenus Prunus. The native range is somewhat uncertain due to its extensive prehistoric cultivation.- Description :...
s, grape
Grape
A grape is a non-climacteric fruit, specifically a berry, that grows on the perennial and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis. Grapes can be eaten raw or they can be used for making jam, juice, jelly, vinegar, wine, grape seed extracts, raisins, molasses and grape seed oil. Grapes are also...
s, melon
Melon
thumb|200px|Various types of melonsThis list of melons includes members of the plant family Cucurbitaceae with edible, fleshy fruit e.g. gourds or cucurbits. The word "melon" can refer to either the plant or specifically to the fruit...
s, and mullberry. Several provinces in the north of the country (i.e. Badghis
Badghis Province
Bādghīs is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is located in northwestern Afghanistan, between the Murghab and Hari rivers, extending as far northward as the edge of the desert of Sarakhs. It includes the Chul formations through which the Turkmen-Afghan boundary runs...
and Samangan
Samangan Province
Samangan is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. The province covers and has a population of approximately 313,211, as of 2006.Its capital, Samangan, is known for its ancient ruins including, notably, the Takht e Rostam...
) are famous for pistachio
Pistachio
The pistachio, Pistacia vera in the Anacardiaceae family, is a small tree originally from Persia , which now can also be found in regions of Syria, Lebanon, Turkey, Greece, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, India, Pakistan, Egypt, Sicily and possibly Afghanistan , as well as in the United States,...
cultivation but the area currently lacks proper marketing and processing plants. It is claimed that some Indian companies buy Afghan pistachios for a very low price, process them in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and sell to western countries as Indian products. However, the Afghan government is planning to build storage facilities for pistachios since receiving bumper crops in 2010.
Wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
and cereal
Cereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...
production is Afghanistan's traditional agricultural mainstay. The overall agricultural production dramatically declined following four years of drought as well as the sustained fighting and instability in rural areas. Soviet efforts to disrupt production in resistance-dominated areas also contributed to this decline, as did the disruption to trince 2002, more than 4 million refugees returned to Afghanistan. Many of these former refugees are now involved in the farming industry. Some studies indicate that agricultural production and livestock numbers may only be sufficient to feed about half of the country's population. Shortages are exacerbated by the country's limited transportation network, which is currently being rebuilt. A report by the Food and Agriculture Organization
Food and Agriculture Organization
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is a specialised agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Serving both developed and developing countries, FAO acts as a neutral forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements and...
(FAO) states that Afghanistan was nearing self-sufficiency in grain production.
The availability of land suitable for grazing has traditionally made animal husbandry
Animal husbandry
Animal husbandry is the agricultural practice of breeding and raising livestock.- History :Animal husbandry has been practiced for thousands of years, since the first domestication of animals....
an important part of the economy. There are two main types of animal husbandry: sedentary, practiced by farmers who raise both animals and crops; and nomadic, practiced by animal herders known as Kuchis. Natural pastures cover some 7500000 acres (30,351.5 km²) but are being overgrazed. The northern regions around Mazar-i-Sharif and Maymanah were the home range for about six million karakul sheep in the late 1990s. Most flocks move to the highlands in the summer to pastures in the north. Oxen are the primary draft power and farmers often share animals for plowing. Poultry
Poultry
Poultry are domesticated birds kept by humans for the purpose of producing eggs, meat, and/or feathers. These most typically are members of the superorder Galloanserae , especially the order Galliformes and the family Anatidae , commonly known as "waterfowl"...
are traditionally kept in many houses, mostly in rural households.
Much of Afghanistan's livestock was removed from the country by early waves of refugees who fled to neighboring Pakistan and Iran. In 2001, the livestock population in Afghanistan had declined by about 40% since 1998. In 2002, this figure was estimated to have declined further to 60%. An FAO survey done in the northern regions in spring 2002 showed that in four provinces (Balkh
Balkh
Balkh , was an ancient city and centre of Zoroastrianism in what is now northern Afghanistan. Today it is a small town in the province of Balkh, about 20 kilometers northwest of the provincial capital, Mazar-e Sharif, and some south of the Amu Darya. It was one of the major cities of Khorasan...
, Juzjan, Sar-e Pol
Sar-e Pol
Sar-e Pol may refer to many places in Afghanistan:* Sar-e Pol Province in Afghanistan* Sar-e Pol District in Sar-e Pol Province* Sar-e Pol city in Sar-e Pol District*Sar-e Pol, Jowzjan*Sar-e Pol...
, and Faryab), there was a loss of about 84% of cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
from 1997 to 2002 and around 80% of sheep and goat
Goat
The domestic goat is a subspecies of goat domesticated from the wild goat of southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the Bovidae family and is closely related to the sheep as both are in the goat-antelope subfamily Caprinae. There are over three hundred distinct breeds of...
. The great majority of Afghans traditionally raise sheep instead of goats because goat meat is not much popular within Afghanistan. After 200, the Afghan ministry of agriculture and livestock and USAID have been helping to regrow the number of livestocks throughout the country. This is done by providing Afghan villagers training and animals to start with.
Fishing
The nation has plenty of water reserves and suitable climate for fish farmingFish farming
Fish farming is the principal form of aquaculture, while other methods may fall under mariculture. Fish farming involves raising fish commercially in tanks or enclosures, usually for food. A facility that releases young fish into the wild for recreational fishing or to supplement a species'...
. Fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
takes place in the lakes and rivers, such as in Sarobi and Mahipar area. Fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
constitute a smaller part of the Afghan diet today because fish farmers are unable to produce enough fish to keep up with the demands of customers. Using explosives for fishing, called dynamite fishing, became popular in the 1980s and is still practiced by some even though it is illegal today. The annual catch was about 900 tons in 2003. Most fish and seafood
Seafood
Seafood is any form of marine life regarded as food by humans. Seafoods include fish, molluscs , crustaceans , echinoderms . Edible sea plants, such as some seaweeds and microalgae, are also seafood, and are widely eaten around the world, especially in Asia...
is imported from neighboring Pakistan, Iran, the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
and other countries. In recent years, USAID has helped many Afghans in establishing fish farms across the country. There are about 300 fish farms throughout the country and the largest one is at the Qargha, which supplies fish eggs to the other ones.
Forestry
Afghanistan's timberTimber
Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...
has been greatly depleted, and since the mid-1980s, only about 3% of the land area has been forested, mainly in the east. Significant stands of trees have been destroyed by the ravages of the war. Exploitation has been hampered by lack of power and access roads. Moreover, the distribution of the forest is uneven, and most of the remaining woodland is presently found only in mountainous regions in the southeast and south. The natural forests in Afghanistan are mainly of two types: dense forests of oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
, walnut
Walnut
Juglans is a plant genus of the family Juglandaceae, the seeds of which are known as walnuts. They are deciduous trees, 10–40 meters tall , with pinnate leaves 200–900 millimetres long , with 5–25 leaflets; the shoots have chambered pith, a character shared with the wingnuts , but not the hickories...
, and other species of nuts that grow in the southeast, and on the northern and northeastern slopes of the Sulaiman ranges; and sparsely distributed short trees and shrubs on all other slopes of the Hindu Kush
Hindu Kush
The Hindu Kush is an mountain range that stretches between central Afghanistan and northern Pakistan. The highest point in the Hindu Kush is Tirich Mir in the Chitral region of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.It is the westernmost extension of the Pamir Mountains, the Karakoram Range, and is a...
. The dense forests of the southeast cover only 2.7% of the country. Roundwood
Roundwood
Roundwood, historically known as Tochar , is a village in County Wicklow, Ireland. It was listed as having a population of 589 in the census of 2006....
production in 2003 was 3,148,000 cubic metres, with 44% used for fuel
Fuel
Fuel is any material that stores energy that can later be extracted to perform mechanical work in a controlled manner. Most fuels used by humans undergo combustion, a redox reaction in which a combustible substance releases energy after it ignites and reacts with the oxygen in the air...
. The destruction of the forests to create agricultural land, logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
, forest fires, plant diseases, and insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
pests are all causes of the reduction in forest coverage. Illegal logging and clear-cutting by timber smugglers have exacerbated this destructive process.
Trade and industry
Afghan rug
An Afghan rug is a type of handwoven floor-covering textile traditionally made in Afghanistan. Many of the Afghan rugs are also woven by Afghan refugees who reside in Pakistan and Iran. In any case, Afghan rugs are genuine, often charming — and usually phenomenally inexpensive...
are one of the most popular products exported from the country. Other products include hand crafted antique replicas as well as leather and furs.
Afghanistan is endowed with a wealth of natural resources, including extensive deposits of natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
, petroleum
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
, coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
, marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
, gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
, copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
, chromite
Chromite
Chromite is an iron chromium oxide: FeCr2O4. It is an oxide mineral belonging to the spinel group. Magnesium can substitute for iron in variable amounts as it forms a solid solution with magnesiochromite ; substitution of aluminium occurs leading to hercynite .-Occurrence:Chromite is found in...
, talc
Talc
Talc is a mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate with the chemical formula H2Mg34 or Mg3Si4O102. In loose form, it is the widely-used substance known as talcum powder. It occurs as foliated to fibrous masses, its crystals being so rare as to be almost unknown...
, barites, sulfur
Sulfur
Sulfur or sulphur is the chemical element with atomic number 16. In the periodic table it is represented by the symbol S. It is an abundant, multivalent non-metal. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with chemical formula S8. Elemental sulfur is a bright yellow...
, lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
, zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
, iron ore, salt
Salt
In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
, precious and semi-precious stones, and many rare earth element
Rare earth element
As defined by IUPAC, rare earth elements or rare earth metals are a set of seventeen chemical elements in the periodic table, specifically the fifteen lanthanides plus scandium and yttrium...
s. In 2006, a U.S. Geological Survey estimated that Afghanistan has as much as 36 Tcuft of natural gas, 3.6 Goilbbl of oil and condensate reserves. According to a 2007 assessment, Afghanistan has significant amounts of undiscovered non-fuel mineral resources. Geologists also found indications of abundant deposits of colored stones and gemstones, including emerald
Emerald
Emerald is a variety of the mineral beryl colored green by trace amounts of chromium and sometimes vanadium. Beryl has a hardness of 7.5–8 on the 10 point Mohs scale of mineral hardness...
, ruby
Ruby
A ruby is a pink to blood-red colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum . The red color is caused mainly by the presence of the element chromium. Its name comes from ruber, Latin for red. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sapphires...
, sapphire
Sapphire
Sapphire is a gemstone variety of the mineral corundum, an aluminium oxide , when it is a color other than red or dark pink; in which case the gem would instead be called a ruby, considered to be a different gemstone. Trace amounts of other elements such as iron, titanium, or chromium can give...
, garnet
Garnet
The garnet group includes a group of minerals that have been used since the Bronze Age as gemstones and abrasives. The name "garnet" may come from either the Middle English word gernet meaning 'dark red', or the Latin granatus , possibly a reference to the Punica granatum , a plant with red seeds...
, lapis, kunzite, spinel
Spinel
Spinel is the magnesium aluminium member of the larger spinel group of minerals. It has the formula MgAl2O4. Balas ruby is an old name for a rose-tinted variety.-Spinel group:...
, tourmaline
Tourmaline
Tourmaline is a crystal boron silicate mineral compounded with elements such as aluminium, iron, magnesium, sodium, lithium, or potassium. Tourmaline is classified as a semi-precious stone and the gem comes in a wide variety of colors...
and peridot
Peridot
-Chemistry:The chemical composition of peridot is 2SiO4, with Mg in greater quantities than Fe.-Etymology:The origin of the name "peridot" is uncertain...
. In 2010, U.S. Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
officials along with American geologists have revealed the discovery of nearly $1 trillion in untapped mineral deposits in Afghanistan. Plans are being made by the Afghan government to begin extracting these but with the Taliban insurgency
Taliban insurgency
The Taliban insurgency took root shortly after the group's fall from power following the 2001 war in Afghanistan. The Taliban continue to attack Afghan, U.S., and other ISAF troops and many terrorist incidents attributable to them have been registered. The war has also spread over the southern and...
and the corruption there is no telling what will happen.
A memo from the Pentagon stated that Afghanistan could become the "Saudi Arabia of lithium
Lithium
Lithium is a soft, silver-white metal that belongs to the alkali metal group of chemical elements. It is represented by the symbol Li, and it has the atomic number 3. Under standard conditions it is the lightest metal and the least dense solid element. Like all alkali metals, lithium is highly...
". Some believe, including Afghan President Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai, GCMG is the 12th and current President of Afghanistan, taking office on 7 December 2004. He became a dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001...
, that the untapped minerals are worth at least $3 trillion. Another US Geological Survey estimate from September 2011 shows that the Khanashin carbonatites in the Helmand Province
Helmand Province
Helmand is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the southwest of the country. Its capital is Lashkar Gah. The Helmand River flows through the mainly desert region, providing water for irrigation....
of the country have an estimated 1 million metric tonnes of rare earth element
Rare earth element
As defined by IUPAC, rare earth elements or rare earth metals are a set of seventeen chemical elements in the periodic table, specifically the fifteen lanthanides plus scandium and yttrium...
s. Regina Dubey, Acting Director for the Department of Defence Task Force for Business and Stability Operations (TFBSO) stated that "this is just one more piece of evidence that Afghanistan's mineral sector has a bright future."
Afghanistan has signed a copper deal with China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
(Metallurgical Corp. of China Ltd.) in 2008, which is to a large scale project that involves the investment of $2.8 billion dollars by China and an annual income of about $400 million dollars to the Afghan government. The country's Ainak copper mine, located in Logar province
Lowgar Province
Logar is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan.The word of Logar is built from two Pashto words: Loy and Ghar . It is located in the eastern zone, southeast of Kabul, and the geography of the province centers on the large Logar River which enters the province through the west and leaves to the...
, is one of the biggest in the world and is expected to provide jobs to 20,000 Afghans. It is estimated to hold at least 11 million tonnes or 33 billion US dollars worth of copper. Experts believe that the production of copper could begin within two to three years and the iron ore in five to seven years as of 2010. The nation's other recently announced treasure is the Hajigak iron ore mine, located 130 miles west of Kabul and is believed to hold an estimated 1.8 billion to 2 billion metric tons of the mineral used to make steel. Companies from India, Turkey, China, Iran and others have shown interest in participating in the Hajigak iron ore tender.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
to pay for imports and debts. However, during the withdrawal of Soviet troops in 1989, Afghanistan's natural gas fields were capped to prevent sabotage by the Mujahideen
Mujahideen
Mujahideen are Muslims who struggle in the path of God. The word is from the same Arabic triliteral as jihad .Mujahideen is also transliterated from Arabic as mujahedin, mujahedeen, mudžahedin, mudžahidin, mujahidīn, mujaheddīn and more.-Origin of the concept:The beginnings of Jihad are traced...
. Gas production has dropped from a high of 8.2 million cubic metres per day in the 1980s to a low of about 600 thousand cubic meters in 2001. After the formation of the new Karzai administration
Karzai administration
The Karzai administration is the official government of Afghanistan under President Hamid Karzai, who became the head of state of Afghanistan in December 2001, after the Taliban government was removed. He was appointed at the 2002 Loya Jirga as the Interim President of the Afghan Transitional...
, production of natural gas has been restored again. A locally owned company, Azizi Hotak General Trading Group, is currently the main supplier of diesel fuel, gasoline
Gasoline
Gasoline , or petrol , is a toxic, translucent, petroleum-derived liquid that is primarily used as a fuel in internal combustion engines. It consists mostly of organic compounds obtained by the fractional distillation of petroleum, enhanced with a variety of additives. Some gasolines also contain...
, jet fuel
Jet fuel
Jet fuel is a type of aviation fuel designed for use in aircraft powered by gas-turbine engines. It is clear to straw-colored in appearance. The most commonly used fuels for commercial aviation are Jet A and Jet A-1 which are produced to a standardized international specification...
and LPG in Afghanistan.
Trade in goods smuggled into Pakistan once constituted a major source of revenue for Afghanistan. Many of the goods that were smuggled into Pakistan have originally entered Afghanistan from Pakistan, where they fell under the Afghan Trade and Transit Agreement (ATTA). This permitted goods bound for Afghanistan to transit through Pakistan free of duty
Duty (economics)
In economics, a duty is a kind of tax, often associated with customs, a payment due to the revenue of a state, levied by force of law. It is a tax on certain items purchased abroad...
. This resulted in considerable problems for the Pakistani government, particularly its customs bureau who realized that many of the items being resold on the black market in Pakistan were the very same items being allowed duty free exemption from Pakistani ports (mainly Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
) on their way to Afghanistan. When Pakistan clamped down in 2003 on the types of goods permitted duty-free transit, and introducing stringent measures and labels to prevent such practices, re-routing of goods through Iran from the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
increased significantly. The pre-2003 smuggling trade provided undocumented jobs to tens of thousands of Afghans and Pakistanis, but also helped fuel the black economy, often intertwined with the drug cartels, of both countries. Afghanistan and Pakistan recently signed into law a new Afghan-Pak Trade and Transit Agreement (APTTA), which allows their shipping truck
Truck
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, with the smallest being mechanically similar to an automobile...
s to transit goods within both nations. This revised US-sponsored APTTA agreement also allows Afghan trucks to transport exports to India via Pakistan through the Wagah
Wagah
Wagah is the only road border crossing between Pakistan and India , and lies on the Grand Trunk Road between the cities of Lahore, Pakistan and Amritsar, India. Wagah itself is a village through which the controversial Radcliffe Line was drawn. The village was divided by independence in 1947...
crossing point. According to Afghanistan's Chamber of Commerce and Industries deputy head, Khan Jan Alokozai, about 500 shipping container
Intermodal container
An intermodal container is a standardized reusable steel box used for the safe, efficient and secure storage and movement of materials and products within a global containerized intermodal freight transport system...
s of trade goods enter Afghanistan via Pakistan on a daily basis.
Economic development and recovery
The nation's banking system has improved recently with over fourteen different banks in operation. They include Da Afghanistan Bank
Da Afghanistan Bank
The Afghanistan Bank is the central bank of Afghanistan. It regulates all the banking and money handling operations in Afghanistan.Da Afghanistan Bank is one of the leading & government recognized bank of Afghanistan which was established on 1939....
, Afghanistan International Bank
Afghanistan International Bank
Afghanistan International Bank is a local commercial bank in Afghanistan, with its head office in Kabul. The bank has seven branch offices in the major cities of the country....
, Azizi Bank
Azizi Bank
Azizi Bank is the name of a commercial bank in Afghanistan, which has its main branch in Kabul. It also has branches in many provinces of the country. The bank opened in June 2005 and is named after its chairman, Haji Ali Akbar Zhawandai...
, Kabul Bank
Kabul Bank
Kabul Bank is a commercial bank in Afghanistan, with its main branch in the capital of Kabul. Established in 2004, it is the main bank used to pay the salaries of the army and security forces. The bank provides facilities to maintain accounts in Current, Savings Bank and Fixed Deposits; and offers...
, Pashtany Bank
Pashtany Bank
Pashtany Bank is the firm controlled by the Afghan government that controls the Central Bank of Afghanistan, the Afghan national insurance company and Ariana Afghan Airlines. It was established in 1954 to manage the Da Afghanistan Bank, the central bank of Afghanistan.Hayat Dayani is the President...
, Standard Chartered Bank
Standard Chartered Bank
Standard Chartered PLC is a multinational financial services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom with operations in more than seventy countries...
, First Micro Finance Bank
First Micro Finance Bank
:For other banks with a similar name, see First Bank.First Micro Finance Bank is a banking and loan institution of Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance. The institution operates in Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is owned by the Aga Khan Development Network....
, and others. In 2010, Kabul Bank became in financial crisis after depositors had withdrawn $180 million. A new law on private investment provides three to seven-year tax holiday
Tax holiday
A tax holiday is a temporary reduction or elimination of a tax. Programs may be referred to as tax abatements, tax subsidies, tax holidays, or tax reduction programs. Governments usually create tax holidays as incentives for business investment...
s to eligible companies and a four-year exemption from exports tariff
Tariff
A tariff may be either tax on imports or exports , or a list or schedule of prices for such things as rail service, bus routes, and electrical usage ....
s and duties. As a result of the new banks in the country, Afghan expats are sending more money back home to their family or relatives. According to a UN report in 2007, Afghanistan has received over $3.3 billion from its expatriate community in 2006. UN officials familiar with the issue said remittances to Afghanistan could have been more if the banking regulations are more convenient.
Kabul symbolizes the spirits of all Afghans and international cooperation, sets at the heart of this highly resourceful region, with great potential to turn into a business hub. After 2002, the new geo-political dynamics and its subsequent business opportunities, rapid urban population growth and emergence of high unemployment, triggered the planning of urban extension towards the immediate north of Kabul, in the form of a new city.
In 2006, President Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai, GCMG is the 12th and current President of Afghanistan, taking office on 7 December 2004. He became a dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001...
established and Independent Board for the Development of Kabul New City. The Board brings together key stakeholders, including relevant government agencies, as well as representation from private sector and urban specialists and economists, with cooperation from the government of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and French private sector, the board prepared a master plan for the city in the context of Greater Kabul. The master plan and its implementation strategy for 2025 were endorsed by the Afghan Cabinet in early 2009. The initiative turned into one of the biggest commercially viable national development project of the country, expected to be led by the private sector.
In the meantime, a number of high rise buildings are being planned and constructed across Kabul, as part of the attempt to modernize the city and create jobs. An initial concept design called the City of Light Development
City of Light Development
The Kabul - City of Light Development is an urban reconstruction plan, first proposed by urban planner and architect Hisham N. Ashkouri to revitalize the capital city of Afghanistan. The plan targets an area just south of the Kabul River for redevelopment...
, envisioned by Hisham N. Ashkouri
Hisham N. Ashkouri
Hisham N. Ashkouri is a Boston and New York-based architect.Dr. Ashkouri graduated first in class in 1970 with a Bachelor of Architecture Degree from the University of Baghdad and continued for his Masters of Architecture at the University of Pennsylvania under the late Louis I. Kahn in 1973...
, for the development and the implementation of a privately based investment enterprise has been proposed for a multi-function commercial, historic and cultural development within the limits of the Old City of Kabul, along the southern side of the Kabul River
Kabul River
Kabul River , the classical Cophes , is a 700 km long river that starts in the Sanglakh Range of the Hindu Kush Mountains in Afghanistan and ends in the Indus River near Attock, Pakistan. It is the main river in eastern Afghanistan and is separated from the watershed of the Helmand by the Unai Pass...
and along Jade Meywand Avenue. It is expected to revitalize some of the most commercial and historic districts in the City of Kabul, which will contain numerous historic mosques and shrines as well as viable commercial activities among and within war-damaged buildings. Also incorporated in the design is a new complex for a new Afghan National Museum. The design has garnered interest from President Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai, GCMG is the 12th and current President of Afghanistan, taking office on 7 December 2004. He became a dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001...
, and has support from Ambassador Said Tayeb Jawad
Said Tayeb Jawad
Said Tayeb Jawad was appointed Afghan Ambassador to the U.S. on December 4, 2003, by President Hamid Karzai and served as Ambassador until September 22, 2010. He also served as Afghanistan’s non-resident Ambassador to Mexico, Brazil, Colombia and Argentina. He previously was Chief of Staff to the...
, who signed a Memo of Understanding regarding the development.
Since its inception in 1991, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs , is a United Nations body formed in December 1991 by General Assembly Resolution 46/182...
to Afghanistan has channelled more than $1 billion in multilateral assistance to Afghan refugees and vulnerable persons inside Afghanistan. The United States, the European Union (EU), and Japan are the leading contributors to this relief effort. One of its key tasks is to eliminate from priority areas—such as villages, arable fields, and roads—some of the 5 to 7 million land mines and 750,000 pieces of unexploded ordnance
Unexploded ordnance
Unexploded ordnance are explosive weapons that did not explode when they were employed and still pose a risk of detonation, potentially many decades after they were used or discarded.While "UXO" is widely and informally used, munitions and explosives of...
, sown mainly during the Soviet occupation, which continue to litter the Afghan landscape. Afghanistan is still a heavily mined country; mine-related injuries number about 60 per-month. Without successful mine clearance, refugee repatriation, political stability, and economic reconstruction
Economic reconstruction
Economic Reconstruction refers to a process for creating a proactive vision of economic change. The most basic idea is that problems in the economy such as deindustrialization, environmental decay, outsourcing, industrial incompetence, poverty and addiction to a permanent war economy are based on...
will be severely constrained.
Since 2001, the international community has pledged $25 billion in help but has delivered only $15 billion as of 2008. The reconstruction of Afghanistan requires a sustained and substantial commitment of aid. Too much money meant for Afghanistan aid is wasted, with a vast amount spent on foreign workers' high salaries, security and living arrangements.
National accounts
The majority of the following information is taken from, or adapted from The World FactbookThe World Factbook
The World Factbook is a reference resource produced by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official paper copy version is available from the National Technical Information Service and the Government Printing Office...
GDP
Gross domestic product
Gross domestic product refers to the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living....
: purchasing power parity - $27.36 billion (2010 est.), with an exchange rate at $15.61 billion (2010 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
- 8.2% (2010)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $900 (2010)
GDP - composition by sector:
- agriculture: 31%
- industry: 26.3%
- services: 42.1% (2008)
note: data excludes opium production
Population below poverty line:
- 36% (2009)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
- lowest 10%: 3.8%
- highest 10%: 24%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 0.9% (2009)
country comparison to the world: 19
Labor force: 15 million (2004)
country comparison to the world: 39
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 78.6%, industry 5.7%, services 15.7% (2009)
Unemployment rate: 35% (2009)
country comparison to the world: 180
Budget:
- revenues: $1 billion
- expenditures: $3.3 billion
Industries: small-scale production of textile
Textile
A textile or cloth is a flexible woven material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, or other material to produce long strands...
s, soap
Soap
In chemistry, soap is a salt of a fatty acid.IUPAC. "" Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 2nd ed. . Compiled by A. D. McNaught and A. Wilkinson. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford . XML on-line corrected version: created by M. Nic, J. Jirat, B. Kosata; updates compiled by A. Jenkins. ISBN...
, furniture
Furniture
Furniture is the mass noun for the movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating and sleeping in beds, to hold objects at a convenient height for work using horizontal surfaces above the ground, or to store things...
, shoe
Shoe
A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot while doing various activities. Shoes are also used as an item of decoration. The design of shoes has varied enormously through time and from culture to culture, with appearance originally being tied to function...
s, fertilizer
Fertilizer
Fertilizer is any organic or inorganic material of natural or synthetic origin that is added to a soil to supply one or more plant nutrients essential to the growth of plants. A recent assessment found that about 40 to 60% of crop yields are attributable to commercial fertilizer use...
, apparel, food-product
Food
Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
s, non-alcoholic beverages, mineral water
Mineral water
Mineral water is water containing minerals or other dissolved substances that alter its taste or give it therapeutic value, generally obtained from a naturally occurring mineral spring or source. Dissolved substances in the water may include various salts and sulfur compounds...
, cement
Cement
In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term opus caementicium to describe masonry resembling modern concrete that was made from crushed...
; handwoven carpets; natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
, coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
, copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
Electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
- production: 285.5 million kWh (2009)
country comparison to the world: 169
Electricity - production by source:
- fossil fuel: 36.3%
- hydro: 63.7%
- nuclear: 0%
- other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption: 231.1 million kWh (2009)
country comparison to the world: 137
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2007)
Electricity - imports: 120 million kWh (2008)
Oil - production: 0 oilbbl/d (2003)
country comparison to the world: 210
Oil - consumption: 5036 oilbbl/d (2006)
country comparison to the world: 165
Oil - proved reserves: 1600000000 barrels (254,379,672,000 l) (2006)
Natural gas - production: 220 million m³ (2001)
Natural gas - consumption: 220 million m³ (2001)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 15.7 trillion cubic feet (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products: opium poppies, wheat, fruits, nuts
Nut (fruit)
A nut is a hard-shelled fruit of some plants having an indehiscent seed. While a wide variety of dried seeds and fruits are called nuts in English, only a certain number of them are considered by biologists to be true nuts...
, karakul
Karakul
See also: Karakul Karakul or Qaraqul is a breed of domestic sheep which originated in Central Asia...
pelts
Exports: $547 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 164
Exports - commodities: opium, fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets, wool
Wool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
, cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
, hides
Hides
A hide is an animal skin treated for human use. Hides include leather from cattle and other livestock animals, alligator skins, snake skins for shoes and fashion accessories and furs from wild cats, mink and bears. In some areas, leather is produced on a domestic or small industrial scale, but most...
and pelts, precious and semi-precious stones
Exports - partners: Pakistan 25.9%, India 25.5%, United States 14.9%, Tajikistan 9.6%, Germany 5% (2010)
Imports: $5.3 billion (2008)
Imports - commodities: capital goods, food, textiles and petroleum products
Imports - partners: United States 29.1%, Pakistan 23.3%, India 7.6%, Russia 4.5%, Germany 4.2% (2010)
Debt - external: $2.3 billion total (2011)
- Russia - $987 million
- Asian Development Bank - $ 596 million
- World Bank - $435 million
- International Monetary Fund - $114 million
- Germany - $18 million
- Saudi Development Fund - $47 million
- Islamic Development Bank - $11 million
- Bulgaria - $51 million
- Kuwait Development Fund - $22 million
- Iran - $10 million
- Opec - $1.8 million
Current account balance: - $67 million (2007)
country comparison to the world: 79
Currency: Afghani
Afghan afghani
The Afghani is the currency of Afghanistan. It is notionally subdivided into 100 pul , although there are no pul coins in circulation.-Original Afghani :...
(AFN)
Exchange rates: afghanis (AFA) per US dollar - 46 = $1
- 46.45 (2010)
- 50.23 (2009)
Fiscal year: 21 March - 21 March
External links
- Ministry of Finance, Afghanistan
- Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Afghanistan
- Afghanistan Customs Department
- Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation & Development, Afghanistan
- Afghanistan Investment Support Agency (AISA)
- Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS)
- Da Afghanistan Bank (Central Bank)
- Afghanistan's Paper Money
- Afghanistan Sixth PRGF Review, International Monetary FundInternational Monetary FundThe International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...