Libya (2005) | Afghanistan (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | 25 municipalities (baladiyat, singular - baladiyah); Ajdabiya, Al 'Aziziyah, Al Fatih, Al Jabal al Akhdar, Al Jufrah, Al Khums, Al Kufrah, An Nuqat al Khams, Ash Shati', Awbari, Az Zawiyah, Banghazi, Darnah, Ghadamis, Gharyan, Misratah, Murzuq, Sabha, Sawfajjin, Surt, Tarabulus, Tarhunah, Tubruq, Yafran, Zlitan; note - the 25 municipalities may have been replaced by 13 regions | 34 provinces (velayat, singular - velayat); Badakhshan, Badghis, Baghlan, Balkh, Bamian, Daykondi, Farah, Faryab, Ghazni, Ghowr, Helmand, Herat, Jowzjan, Kabol, Kandahar, Kapisa, Khowst, Konar, Kondoz, Laghman, Lowgar, Nangarhar, Nimruz, Nurestan, Oruzgan, Paktia, Paktika, Panjshir, Parvan, Samangan, Sar-e Pol, Takhar, Vardak, Zabol |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 33.9% (male 997,364/female 955,272)
15-64 years: 62% (male 1,842,775/female 1,729,235) 65 years and over: 4.2% (male 117,967/female 122,950) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 44.6% (male 7,095,117/female 6,763,759)
15-64 years: 53% (male 8,436,716/female 8,008,463) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 366,642/female 386,300) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, olives, dates, citrus, vegetables, peanuts, soybeans; cattle | opium, wheat, fruits, nuts; wool, mutton, sheepskins, lambskins |
Airports | 139 (2004 est.) | 46 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 59
over 3,047 m: 23 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 23 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 11
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 80
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 41 under 914 m: 18 (2004 est.) |
total: 35
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 9 (2006) |
Area | total: 1,759,540 sq km
land: 1,759,540 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 647,500 sq km
land: 647,500 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Alaska | slightly smaller than Texas |
Background | From the earliest days of his rule following his 1969 military coup, Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI has espoused his own political system, the Third Universal Theory. The system is a combination of socialism and Islam derived in part from tribal practices and is supposed to be implemented by the Libyan people themselves in a unique form of "direct democracy." QADHAFI has always seen himself as a revolutionary and visionary leader. He used oil funds during the 1970s and 1980s to promote his ideology outside Libya, supporting subversives and terrorists abroad to hasten the end of Marxism and capitalism. In addition, beginning in 1973, he engaged in military operations in northern Chad's Aozou Strip - to gain access to minerals and to use as a base of influence in Chadian politics - but was forced to retreat in 1987. UN sanctions in 1992 isolated QADHAFI politically following the downing of Pan AM Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. Libyan support for terrorism appeared to have decreased after the imposition of sanctions. During the 1990s, QADHAFI also began to rebuild his relationships with Europe. UN sanctions were suspended in April 1999 and finally lifted in September 2003 after Libya resolved the Lockerbie case. In December 2003, Libya announced that it had agreed to reveal and end its programs to develop weapons of mass destruction, and QADHAFI has made significant strides in normalizing relations with western nations since then. He has received various Western European leaders as well as many working-level and commercial delegations, and made his first trip to Western Europe in 15 years when he traveled to Brussels in April 2004. QADHAFI also finally resolved in 2004 several outstanding cases against his government for terrorist activities in the 1980s by paying compensation to the families of victims of the UTA and La Belle disco bombings. | Ahmad Shah DURRANI unified the Pashtun tribes and founded Afghanistan in 1747. The country served as a buffer between the British and Russian empires until it won independence from notional British control in 1919. A brief experiment in democracy ended in a 1973 coup and a 1978 Communist counter-coup. The Soviet Union invaded in 1979 to support the tottering Afghan Communist regime, but withdrew 10 years later under relentless pressure by internationally supported anti-Communist mujahedin rebels. A civil war between mujahedin factions erupted following the 1992 fall of the Communist regime. The Taliban, a hardline Pakistani-sponsored movement that emerged in 1994 to end the country's civil war and anarchy, seized Kabul in 1996 and most of the country outside of opposition Northern Alliance strongholds by 1998. Following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks, a US, Allied, and Northern Alliance military action toppled the Taliban for sheltering Osama BIN LADIN. In late 2001, a conference in Bonn, Germany, established a process for political reconstruction that included the adoption of a new constitution and a presidential election in 2004, and National Assembly elections in 2005. On 7 December 2004, Hamid KARZAI became the first democratically elected president of Afghanistan. The National Assembly was inaugurated on 19 December 2005. |
Birth rate | 26.82 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 46.6 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $13.52 billion
expenditures: $12.23 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.6 billion (2004 est.) |
revenues: $269 million
expenditures: $561 million; including capital expenditures of $41.7 million note: Afghanistan has also received $273 million from the Reconstruction Trust Fund and $63 million from the Law and Order Trust Fund (FY04-05 budget est.) |
Capital | Tripoli | name: Kabul
geographic coordinates: 34 31 N, 69 12 E time difference: UTC+4.5 (9.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior | arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers |
Coastline | 1,770 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 11 December 1969; amended 2 March 1977 | new constitution drafted 14 December 2003-4 January 2004; signed 16 January 2004 |
Country name | conventional long form: Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
conventional short form: Libya local long form: Al Jumahiriyah al Arabiyah al Libiyah ash Shabiyah al Ishtirakiyah al Uzma local short form: none |
conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
conventional short form: Afghanistan local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Afghanestan local short form: Afghanestan former: Republic of Afghanistan |
Death rate | 3.48 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 20.34 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.069 billion (2004 est.) | $8 billion in bilateral debt, mostly to Russia; Afghanistan has $500 million in debt to Multilateral Development Banks (2004) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US suspended all embassy activities in Tripoli in May 1980, resumed embassy activities in February 2004 under the protective power of the US interests section of the Belgian Embassy in Tripoli, then opened a Liaison Office in Tripoli in June 2004 | chief of mission: Ambassador Ronald E. NEUMANN
embassy: The Great Masood Road, Kabul mailing address: 6180 Kabul Place, Dulles, VA 20189-6180 telephone: [00 93] (20) 230-0436 FAX: [00 93] (20) 230-1364 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Libya does not have an embassy in the US but maintains an interest section under the protective power of the United Arab Emirates Embassy in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Said Tayeb JAWAD
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 |
Disputes - international | Libya has claimed more than 32,000 sq km in southeastern Algeria and about 25,000 sq km in Niger in currently dormant disputes; various Chadian rebels from the Aozou region reside in southern Libya | most Afghan refugees in Pakistan have been repatriated, but thousands still remain in Iran, many at their own choosing; Coalition and Pakistani forces continue to patrol remote tribal areas to control the borders and stem organized terrorist and other illegal cross-border activities; regular meetings between Pakistani and Coalition allies aim to resolve periodic claims of boundary encroachments; regional conflicts over water-sharing arrangements with Amu Darya and Helmand River states |
Economic aid - recipient | $4.4 million ODA (2002) | international pledges made by more than 60 countries and international financial institutions at the Berlin Donors Conference for Afghan reconstruction in March 2004 reached $8.9 billion for 2004-09 |
Economy - overview | The Libyan economy depends primarily upon revenues from the oil sector, which contribute practically all export earnings and about one-quarter of GDP. These oil revenues and a small population give Libya one of the highest per capita GDPs in Africa, but little of this income flows down to the lower orders of society. Libyan officials in the past four years have made progress on economic reforms as part of a broader campaign to reintegrate the country into the international fold. This effort picked up steam after UN sanctions were lifted in September 2003 and as Libya announced in December 2003 that it would abandon programs to build weapons of mass destruction. Almost all US unilateral sanctions against Libya were removed in April 2004. Libya faces a long road ahead in liberalizing the socialist-oriented economy, but initial steps - including applying for WTO membership, reducing some subsidies, and announcing plans for privatization - are laying the groundwork for a transition to a more market-based economy. The non-oil manufacturing and construction sectors, which account for about 20% of GDP, have expanded from processing mostly agricultural products to include the production of petrochemicals, iron, steel, and aluminum. Climatic conditions and poor soils severely limit agricultural output, and Libya imports about 75% of its food. | Afghanistan's economic outlook has improved significantly since the fall of the Taliban regime in 2001 because of the infusion of over $8 billion in international assistance, recovery of the agricultural sector and growth of the service sector, and the reestablishment of market institutions. Real GDP growth is estimated to have slowed in the last fiscal year primarily because adverse weather conditions cut agricultural production, but is expected to rebound over 2005-06 because of foreign donor reconstruction and service sector growth. Despite the progress of the past few years, Afghanistan remains extremely poor, landlocked, and highly dependent on foreign aid, farming, and trade with neighboring countries. It will probably take the remainder of the decade and continuing donor aid and attention to significantly raise Afghanistan's living standards from its current status, among the lowest in the world. Much of the population continues to suffer from shortages of housing, clean water, electricity, medical care, and jobs, but the Afghan government and international donors remain committed to improving access to these basic necessities by prioritizing infrastructure development, education, housing development, jobs programs, and economic reform over the next year. Growing political stability and continued international commitment to Afghan reconstruction create an optimistic outlook for continuing improvements in the Afghan economy in 2006. Expanding poppy cultivation and a growing opium trade may account for one-third of GDP and looms as one of Kabul's most serious policy challenges. Other long-term challenges include: boosting the supply of skilled labor, reducing vulnerability to severe natural disasters, expanding health services, and rebuilding a war torn infrastructure. |
Electricity - consumption | 19.43 billion kWh (2002) | 1.042 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 200 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 20.89 billion kWh (2002) | 905 million kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sabkhat Ghuzayyil -47 m
highest point: Bikku Bitti 2,267 m |
lowest point: Amu Darya 258 m
highest point: Nowshak 7,485 m |
Environment - current issues | desertification; very limited natural fresh water resources; the Great Manmade River Project, the largest water development scheme in the world, is being built to bring water from large aquifers under the Sahara to coastal cities | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping
signed, but not ratified: Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | Berber and Arab 97%, Greeks, Maltese, Italians, Egyptians, Pakistanis, Turks, Indians, Tunisians | Pashtun 42%, Tajik 27%, Hazara 9%, Uzbek 9%, Aimak 4%, Turkmen 3%, Baloch 2%, other 4% |
Exchange rates | Libyan dinars per US dollar - 1.305 (2004), 1.2929 (2003), 1.2707 (2002), 0.6051 (2001), 0.5122 (2000) | afghanis per US dollar - 541 (2005), 48 (2004), 49 (2003), 41 (2002), 66 (2001)
note: in 2002, the afghani was revalued and the currency stabilized at about 50 afghanis to the dollar; before 2002, the market rate varied widely from the official rate |
Executive branch | chief of state: Revolutionary Leader Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI (since 1 September 1969); note - holds no official title, but is de facto chief of state
head of government: Secretary of the General People's Committee (Prime Minister) Shukri Muhammad GHANIM (since 14 June 2003) cabinet: General People's Committee established by the General People's Congress elections: national elections are indirect through a hierarchy of people's committees; head of government elected by the General People's Congress; election last held 2 March 2000 (next to be held NA) election results: NA |
chief of state: President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Hamid KARZAI (since 7 December 2004); Vice Presidents Ahmad Zia MASOOD and Abdul Karim KHALILI (since 7 December 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; former King ZAHIR Shah holds the honorific, "Father of the Country," and presides symbolically over certain occasions, but lacks any governing authority; the honorific is not hereditary
head of government: President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Hamid KARZAI (since 7 December 2004); Vice Presidents Ahmad Zia MASOOD and Abdul Karim KHALILI (since 7 December 2004); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government cabinet: 27 ministers; note - under the new constitution, ministers are appointed by the president and approved by the National Assembly elections: the president and two vice presidents are 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; a president can only be elected for two terms; election last held 9 October 2004 (next to be held in 2009) election results: Hamid KARZAI elected president; percent of vote - Hamid KARZAI 55.4%, Yunus QANOONI 16.3%, Ustad Mohammad MOHAQQEQ 11.6%, Abdul Rashid DOSTAM 10.0%, Abdul Latif PEDRAM 1.4%, Masooda JALAL 1.2% |
Exports | NA | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | crude oil, refined petroleum products, natural gas | opium, fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets, wool, cotton, hides and pelts, precious and semi-precious gems |
Exports - partners | Italy 37%, Germany 16.6%, Spain 11.9%, Turkey 7.1%, France 6.2% (2004) | US 25.3%, Pakistan 20.9%, India 20.8%, Finland 4% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 21 March - 20 March |
Flag description | plain green; green is the traditional color of Islam (the state religion) | three equal vertical bands of black (hoist), red, and green, with a gold emblem centered on the red band; the emblem features a temple-like structure encircled by a wreath on the left and right and by a bold Islamic inscription above |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8.7%
industry: 45.7% services: 45.6% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 38%
industry: 24% services: 38% note: data exclude opium production (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,700 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.9% (2004 est.) | 14% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 25 00 N, 17 00 E | 33 00 N, 65 00 E |
Geography - note | more than 90% of the country is desert or semidesert | 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) |
Heliports | 1 (2004 est.) | 9 (2006) |
Highways | total: 83,200 km
paved: 47,590 km unpaved: 35,610 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | world's largest producer of opium; cultivation dropped 48% to 107,400 hectares in 2005; better weather and lack of widespread disease returned opium yields to normal levels, meaning potential opium production declined by only 10% to 4,475 metric tons; if the entire poppy crop were processed, it is estimated that 526 metric tons of heroin could be processed; source of hashish; many narcotics-processing labs throughout the country; drug trade source of instability and some antigovernment groups profit from the trade; 80-90% of the heroin consumed in Europe comes from Afghan opium; vulnerable to narcotics money laundering through informal financial networks |
Imports | NA | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery, transport equipment, semi-finished goods, food, consumer products (1999) | capital goods, food, textiles, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Italy 25.5%, Germany 11%, South Korea 6.1%, UK 5.4%, Tunisia 4.7%, Turkey 4.6% (2004) | Pakistan 23.9%, US 11.8%, Germany 6.8%, India 6.5%, Turkey 5.1%, Turkmenistan 5%, Russia 4.7%, Kenya 4.4% (2005) |
Independence | 24 December 1951 (from Italy) | 19 August 1919 (from UK control over Afghan foreign affairs) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA% |
Industries | petroleum, iron and steel, food processing, textiles, handicrafts, cement | small-scale production of textiles, soap, furniture, shoes, fertilizer, cement; handwoven carpets; natural gas, coal, copper |
Infant mortality rate | total: 24.6 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.92 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 160.23 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 164.77 deaths/1,000 live births female: 155.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.9% (2004 est.) | 16.3% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, AU, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), WToO | AsDB, CP, ECO, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE (partner), SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) |
Irrigated land | 4,700 sq km (1998 est.) | 27,200 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | the constitution establishes a nine-member Stera Mahkama or Supreme Court (its nine justices are appointed for 10-year terms by the president with approval of the Wolesi Jirga) and subordinate High Courts and Appeals Courts (note - nine supreme court justices were appointed in the interim in January 2005 pending National Assembly selection of the constitutionally mandated justices); there is also a minister of justice; a separate Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission established by the Bonn Agreement is charged with investigating human rights abuses and war crimes |
Labor force | 1.59 million (2004 est.) | 15 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 17%, industry 29%, services 54% (1997 est.) | agriculture: 80%
industry: 10% services: 10% (2004 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 4,348 km
border countries: Algeria 982 km, Chad 1,055 km, Egypt 1,115 km, Niger 354 km, Sudan 383 km, Tunisia 459 km |
total: 5,529 km
border countries: China 76 km, Iran 936 km, Pakistan 2,430 km, Tajikistan 1,206 km, Turkmenistan 744 km, Uzbekistan 137 km |
Land use | arable land: 1.03%
permanent crops: 0.19% other: 98.78% (2001) |
arable land: 12.13%
permanent crops: 0.21% other: 87.66% (2005) |
Languages | Arabic, Italian, English, all are widely understood in the major cities | Afghan Persian or Dari (official) 50%, Pashtu (official) 35%, Turkic languages (primarily Uzbek and Turkmen) 11%, 30 minor languages (primarily Balochi and Pashai) 4%, much bilingualism |
Legal system | based on Italian civil law system and Islamic law; separate religious courts; no constitutional provision for judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | according to the new constitution, no law should be "contrary to Islam"; the state is obliged to create a prosperous and progressive society based on social justice, protection of human dignity, protection of human rights, realization of democracy, and to ensure national unity and equality among all ethnic groups and tribes; the state shall abide by the UN charter, international treaties, international conventions that Afghanistan signed, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights |
Legislative branch | unicameral General People's Congress (NA seats; members elected indirectly through a hierarchy of people's committees) | the bicameral National Assembly consists of the Wolesi Jirga or House of People (no more than 249 seats), directly elected for five-year terms, and the Meshrano Jirga or House of Elders (102 seats, one-third elected from provincial councils for four-year terms, one-third elected from local district councils for three-year terms - provincial councils elected temporary members to fill these seats until district councils are formed, and one-third presidential appointees for five-year terms; the presidential appointees will include 2 representatives of Kuchis and 2 representatives of the disabled; half of the presidential appointees will be women)
note: on rare occasions the government may convene a Loya Jirga (Grand Council) on issues of independence, national sovereignty, and territorial integrity; it can amend the provisions of the constitution and prosecute the president; it is made up of members of the National Assembly and chairpersons of the provincial and district councils elections: last held 18 September 2005 (next to be held for the Wolesi Jirga by September 2009; next to be held for the provincial councils to the Meshrano Jirga by September 2008) election results: the single non-transferable vote (SNTV) system used in the election did not make use of political party slates; most candidates ran as independents |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.5 years
male: 74.29 years female: 78.82 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 43.34 years
male: 43.16 years female: 43.53 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 82.6% male: 92.4% female: 72% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 36% male: 51% female: 21% (1999 est.) |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Tunisia | Southern Asia, north and west of Pakistan, east of Iran |
Map references | Africa | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
note: Gulf of Sidra closing line - 32 degrees, 30 minutes north |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 17 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 129,627 GRT/105,110 DWT
by type: cargo 7, liquefied gas 3, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 4 foreign-owned: 1 (Algeria 1) (2005) |
- |
Military branches | Armed Peoples on Duty (Army), Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Command | Afghan National Army (includes Afghan Air Force) (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $1.3 billion (FY99) | $122.4 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.9% (FY99) | 1.7% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Revolution Day, 1 September (1969) | Independence Day, 19 August (1919) |
Nationality | noun: Libyan(s)
adjective: Libyan |
noun: Afghan(s)
adjective: Afghan |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dust-laden ghibli is a southern wind lasting one to four days in spring and fall; dust storms, sandstorms | damaging earthquakes occur in Hindu Kush mountains; flooding; droughts |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, gypsum | natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, chromite, talc, barites, sulfur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt, precious and semiprecious stones |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
People - note | - | of the estimated 4 million refugees in October 2001, 2.3 million have returned |
Pipelines | condensate 225 km; gas 3,611 km; oil 7,252 km (2004) | gas 466 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | none | note - includes only political parties approved by the Ministry of Justice: Afghan Millat [Anwarul Haq AHADI]; De Afghanistan De Solay Ghorzang Gond [Shahnawaz TANAI]; De Afghanistan De Solay Mili Islami Gond [Shah Mahmood Polal ZAI]; Harakat-e-Islami Afghanistan [Mohammad Asif MOHSINEE]; Hezb-e-Aarman-e-Mardum-e-Afghanistan [Iihaj Saraj-u-din ZAFAREE]; Hezb-e-Aazadee Afghanistan [Abdul MALIK]; Hezb-e-Adalat-e-Islami Afghanistan [Mohammad Kabeer MARZBAN]; Hezb-e-Afghanistan-e-Wahid [Mohammad Wasil RAHEEMEE]; Hezb-e-Afghan Watan Islami Gond; Hezb-e-Congra-e-Mili Afghanistan [Latif PEDRAM]; Hezb-e-Falah-e-Mardum-e-Afghanistan [Mohammad ZAREEF]; Hezb-e-Hambastagee Mili Jawanan-e-Afghanistan [Mohammad Jamil KARZAI]; Hezb-e-Hamnbatagee-e-Afghanistan [Abdul Khaleq NEMAT]; Hezb-e-Harakat-e-Mili Wahdat-e-Afghanistan [Mohammad Nadir AATASH]; Hezb-e-Harak-e-Islami Mardum-e-Afghanistan [Ilhaj Said Hssain ANWARY]; Hezb-e-Ifazat Az Uqoq-e-Bashar Wa Inkishaf-e-Afghanistan [Baryalai NASRATEE]; Hezb-e-Istiqlal-e-Afghanistan [Dr. Gh. Farooq NIJZRABEE]; Hezb-e-Jamhoree Khwahan [Sibghatullah SANJAR]; Hezb-e-Kar Wa Tawsiha-e-Afghanistan [Zulfiar OMID]; Hezb-e-Libral-e-Aazadee Khwa-e-Mardum-e-Afghanistan [Ajmal SOHAIL]; Hezb-e-Mili Afghanistan [Abdul Rasheed AARYAN]; Hezb-e-Mili Wahdat-e-Aqwam-e-Islami Afghanistan [Mohammad Shah KHOGYANEE]; Hezb-e-Nuhzhat-e-Mili Afghanistan [Ahmad Wali MASOUD]; Hezb-e-Paiwand-e-Mili Afghanistan [Said Mansoor NADIRI]; Hezb-e-Rastakhaiz-e-Islami Mardum-e-Afghanistan [Said ZAHIR]; Hezb-e-Refah-e-Mardum-e-Afghanistan [Mia Gul WASEEQ]; Hezb-e-Risalat-e-Mardum-e-Afghanistan [Noor Aqa ROEEN]; Hezb-e-Sahadat-e-Mardum-e-Afghanistan [Mohammad Zubair PAIROZ]; Hezb-e-Sahadat-e-Mili Wa Islami Afghanistan [Mohammad Usman SALIGZADA]; Hezb-e-Sulh-e-Mili Islami Aqwam-e-Afghanistan [Abdul Qahir SHARYATEE]; Hezb-e-Sulh Wa Wahdat-e-Mili Afghanistan [Abdul Qadir IMAMEE]; Hezb-e-Tafahum-e-Wa Democracy Afghanistan [Ahamad SHAHEEN]; Hezb-e-Wahdat-e-Islami Afghanistan [Mohammad Karim KHALILI]; Hezb-e-Wahdat-e-Islami Mardum-e-Afghanistan [Ustad Mohammad MOHAQQEQ]; Hezb-e-Wahdat-e-Mili Afghanistan [Abdul Rasheed JALILI]; Jamahat-ul-Dahwat ilal Qurhan-wa-Sunat-ul-Afghanistan [Mawlawee Samiullah NAJEEBEE]; Jombesh-e Milli [Abdul Rashid DOSTAM]; Mahaz-e-Mili Islami Afghanistan [Said Ahmad GAILANEE]; Majmah-e-Mili Fahaleen-e-Sulh-e-Afghanistan [Shams ul Haq Noor SHAMS]; Nuhzat-e-Aazadee Wa Democracy Afghanistan [Abdul Raqeeb Jawid KUHISTANEE]; Nuhzat-e-Hambastagee Mili Afghanistan [Peer Said Ishaq GAILANEE]; Sazman-e-Islami Afghanistan-e-Jawan [Siad Jawad HUSSAINEE]; Tahreek Wahdat-e-Mili [Sultan Mahmood DHAZI] (30 Sep 2004) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | various Arab nationalist movements with almost negligible memberships may be functioning clandestinely, as well as some Islamic elements; an anti-QADHAFI Libyan exile movement exists, primarily based in London, but has little influence | Jamiat-e Islami (Society of Islam) [former President Burhanuddin RABBANI]; Ittihad-e Islami (Islamic Union for the Liberation of Afghanistan) [Abdul Rasul SAYYAF]; there are also small monarchist, communist, and democratic groups |
Population | 5,765,563
note: includes 166,510 non-nationals (July 2005 est.) |
31,056,997 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 53% (2003) |
Population growth rate | 2.33% (2005 est.) | 2.67% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | As Sidrah, Az Zuwaytinah, Marsa al Burayqah, Ra's Lanuf, Tripoli, Zawiyah | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 3, shortwave 3 (2002) | AM 21, FM 23, shortwave 1 (broadcasts in Pashtu, Afghan Persian (Dari), Urdu, and English) (2003) |
Railways | 0 km
note: Libya is working on 7 lines totaling 2,757 km of 1.435-m gauge track; it hopes to have trains running by 2008 (2004) |
- |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 97% | Sunni Muslim 80%, Shi'a Muslim 19%, other 1% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.95 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: telecommunications system is being modernized; mobile cellular telephone system became operational in 1996
domestic: microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, cellular, tropospheric scatter, and a domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations international: country code - 218; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat, NA Arabsat, and NA Intersputnik; submarine cables to France and Italy; microwave radio relay to Tunisia and Egypt; tropospheric scatter to Greece; participant in Medarabtel (1999) |
general assessment: very limited telephone and telegraph service
domestic: telephone service is improving with the licensing of four wireless telephone service providers by 2005; approximately 4 in 100 Afghans own a wireless telephone; telephone main lines remain limited. international: country code - 93; five VSAT's installed in Kabul, Herat, Mazar-e-Sharif, Kandahar, and Jalalabad provide international and domestic voice and data connectivity |
Telephones - main lines in use | 750,000 (2003) | 100,000 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 100,000 (2003) | 1.2 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 12 (plus one low-power repeater) (1999) | at least 10 (one government-run central television station in Kabul and regional stations in nine of the 34 provinces; the regional stations operate on a reduced schedule; also, in 1997, there was a station in Mazar-e-Sharif reaching four northern Afghanistan provinces) (1998) |
Terrain | mostly barren, flat to undulating plains, plateaus, depressions | mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest |
Total fertility rate | 3.34 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 6.69 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 30% (2004) | 40% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | - | 1,200 km (chiefly Amu Darya, which handles vessels up to 500 DWT) (2005) |