Friday, September 24, 2010


Afghanistan Today

Afghan = "The People", stan = "The Land of"
Afghanistan = "The Land of Afghans"
Quick Facts:
  • Population:
    32,738,376 (July 2008 est.)
  • Official Languages:
    Pashtu, Dari
  • Religion:
    Sunni Muslim 80%, Shi'a Muslim 19%, Other (Hindu, Christian) 1%
  • Ethnic Groups:Pashtun 42%, Tajik 27%, Hazara 9%, Uzbek 9%, Aimak 4%, Turkmen 3%, Baloch 2%, other 4%
  • Currency:Afghani (1 Afghani (AF) = 100 puls)
  • Independence:19 August 1919 (from UK control over Afghan foreign affairs)
  • Total Area:647,500 sq km (250,000 sq. miles)
  • Environment - International Agreements:
    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
  • GDP:$21.5 billion (2006 est.)
  • GDP - Composition:
    Agriculture: 38%
    Industry: 24%
    Services: 38%
    Note: data exclude opium production (2005 est.)
Geography
Overview:Afghanistan does not have any links to any ocean or sea, it is a landlocked country. The northern and eastern part of the country has high terrain and the lower south and southwest is mostly semi-deserts and plain lands.
Total Area:647,500 sq km (250,000 sq. miles)
Climate:
Arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers.
Terrain:
Mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest.
Environment:
Earthquakes; soil degradation, desertification, overgrazing, deforestation, war pollution.
Extreme Elevations:
lowest point:
Amu Darya 258 m
highest point: Nowshak 7,485 m
Natural Resources:
Natural Gas, Petroleum, Coal, Copper, Chromite, Talc, barites, Sulfur, Lead, Zinc, iron ore, salt, precious and semiprecious stones.
Environment Issues:
Limited natural fresh water 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
Boundary:China 76 km, Iran 936 km, Pakistan 2430 km, Tajikistan 1206 km, Turkmenistan 744 km, Uzbekistan 137 km
Administrative Regions (29 provinces/Wulayats):
Badakhshan, Badghis, Baghlan, Balkh, Bamiyan, Farah, Faryab, Ghazni, Ghor, Helmand, Herat, Juzjan, Kabul, Kandahar, Kapisa, Kunar, Kunduz, Laghman, Logar, Nangarhar, Nimruz, Oruzgan, Paktia, Paktika, Parwan, Samangan, Sar-e-Pul, Takhar, Wardak, Zabul

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