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Compare World (2001) - Afghanistan (2001)

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 World (2001)Afghanistan (2001)
 WorldAfghanistan
Administrative divisions 267 nations, dependent areas, other, and miscellaneous entries 30 provinces (velayat, singular - velayat); Badakhshan, Badghis, Baghlan, Balkh, Bamian, Farah, Faryab, Ghazni, Ghowr, Helmand, Herat, Jowzjan, Kabol, Kandahar, Kapisa, Konar, Kondoz, Laghman, Lowgar, Nangarhar, Nimruz, Oruzgan, Paktia, Paktika, Parvan, Samangan, Sar-e Pol, Takhar, Vardak, Zabol; note - there may be two new provinces of Nurestan (Nuristan) and Khowst
Age structure 0-14 years:
29.6% (male 933,647,850; female 886,681,514)

15-64 years:
63.4% (male 1,975,418,386; female 1,931,021,694)

65 years and over:
7% (male 188,760,223; female 241,449,691) (2001 est.)
0-14 years:
42.2% (male 5,775,921; female 5,538,836)

15-64 years:
55.01% (male 7,644,242; female 7,106,568)

65 years and over:
2.79% (male 394,444; female 353,046) (2001 est.)
Agriculture - products - opium poppies, wheat, fruits, nuts; wool, mutton, karakul pelts
Airports - 45 (2000 est.)
Airports - with paved runways - total:
10

over 3,047 m:
3

2,438 to 3,047 m:
4

1,524 to 2,437 m:
2

under 914 m:
1 (2000 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways - total:
35

2,438 to 3,047 m:
4

1,524 to 2,437 m:
15

914 to 1,523 m:
4

under 914 m:
12 (2000 est.)
Area total:
510.072 million sq km

land:
148.94 million sq km

water:
361.132 million sq km

note:
70.8% of the world's surface is water, 29.2% is land
total:
647,500 sq km

land:
647,500 sq km

water:
0 sq km
Area - comparative land area about 16 times the size of the US slightly smaller than Texas
Background Globally, the 20th century was marked by: (a) two devastating world wars; (b) the Great Depression of the 1930s; (c) the end of vast colonial empires; (d) rapid advances in science and technology, from the first airplane flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina (US) to the landing on the moon; (e) the Cold War between the Western alliance and the Warsaw Pact nations; (f) a sharp rise in living standards in North America, Europe, and Japan; (g) increased concerns about the environment, including loss of forests, shortages of energy and water, the drop in biological diversity, and air pollution; (h) the onset of the AIDS epidemic; and (i) the ultimate emergence of the US as the only world superpower. The planet's population continues to explode: from 1 billion in 1820, to 2 billion in 1930, 3 billion in 1960, 4 billion in 1974, 5 billion in 1988, and 6 billion in 2000. For the 21st century, the continued exponential growth in science and technology raises both hopes (e.g., advances in medicine) and fears (e.g., development of even more lethal weapons of war). Afghanistan was invaded and occupied by the Soviet Union in 1979. The USSR was forced to withdraw 10 years later by anti-communist mujahidin forces supplied and trained by the US, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and others. Fighting subsequently continued among the various mujahidin factions, but the fundamentalist Islamic Taliban movement has been able to seize most of the country. In addition to the continuing civil strife, the country suffers from enormous poverty, a crumbling infrastructure, and widespread land mines.
Birth rate 21.37 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 41.42 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Budget - revenues:
$NA

expenditures:
$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Capital - Kabul
Climate two large areas of polar climates separated by two rather narrow temperate zones from a wide equatorial band of tropical to subtropical climates arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers
Coastline 356,000 km 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution - none
Country name - conventional long form:
Islamic State of Afghanistan; note - the self-proclaimed Taliban government refers to the country as Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan

conventional short form:
Afghanistan

local long form:
Dowlat-e Eslami-ye Afghanestan

local short form:
Afghanestan

former:
Republic of Afghanistan
Currency - afghani (AFA)
Death rate 8.93 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 17.72 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Debt - external $2 trillion for less developed countries (2000 est.) $5.5 billion (1996 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US - the US embassy in Kabul has been closed since January 1989 due to security concerns
Diplomatic representation in the US - none; note - embassy operations suspended 21 August 1997

consulate(s) general:
New York
Disputes - international - support to Islamic militants worldwide by some factions; question over which group should hold Afghanistan's seat at the UN
Economic aid - recipient traditional worldwide foreign aid $50 billion (1997 est.) US provided about $70 million in humanitarian assistance in 1997; US continues to contribute to multilateral assistance through the UN programs of food aid, immunization, land mine removal, and a wide range of aid to refugees and displaced persons
Economy - overview Growth in global output (gross world product, GWP) rose to 4.8% in 2000 from 3.5% in 1999, despite continued low growth in Japan, severe financial difficulties in other East Asian countries, and widespread dislocations in several transition economies. The US economy continued its remarkable sustained prosperity, growing at 5% in 2000, although growth slowed in fourth quarter 2000; the US accounted for 23% of GWP. The EU economies grew at 3.3% and produced 20% of GWP. China, the second largest economy in the world, continued its strong growth and accounted for 10% of GWP. Japan grew at only 1.3% in 2000; its share in GWP is 7%. As usual, the 15 successor nations of the USSR and the other old Warsaw Pact nations experienced widely different rates of growth. The developing nations also varied in their growth results, with many countries facing population increases that eat up gains in output. Externally, the nation-state, as a bedrock economic-political institution, is steadily losing control over international flows of people, goods, funds, and technology. Internally, the central government often finds its control over resources slipping as separatist regional movements - typically based on ethnicity - gain momentum, e.g., in many of the successor states of the former Soviet Union, in the former Yugoslavia, in India, and in Canada. In Western Europe, governments face the difficult political problem of channeling resources away from welfare programs in order to increase investment and strengthen incentives to seek employment. The addition of 80 million people each year to an already overcrowded globe is exacerbating the problems of pollution, desertification, underemployment, epidemics, and famine. Because of their own internal problems and priorities, the industrialized countries devote insufficient resources to deal effectively with the poorer areas of the world, which, at least from the economic point of view, are becoming further marginalized. Continued financial difficulties in East Asia, Russia, and many African nations, as well as the slowdown in US economic growth, cast a shadow over short-term global economic prospects; GWP probably will grow at 3-4% in 2001. The introduction of the euro as the common currency of much of Western Europe in January 1999, while paving the way for an integrated economic powerhouse, poses serious economic risks because of varying levels of income and cultural and political differences among the participating nations. (For specific economic developments in each country of the world in 2000, see the individual country entries.) Afghanistan is an extremely poor, landlocked country, highly dependent on farming and livestock raising (sheep and goats). Economic considerations have played second fiddle to political and military upheavals during two decades of war, including the nearly 10-year Soviet military occupation (which ended 15 February 1989). During that conflict one-third of the population fled the country, with Pakistan and Iran sheltering a combined peak of more than 6 million refugees. In early 2000, 2 million Afghan refugees remained in Pakistan and about 1.4 million in Iran. Gross domestic product has fallen substantially over the past 20 years because of the loss of labor and capital and the disruption of trade and transport; severe drought added to the nation's difficulties in 1998-2000. The majority of the population continues to suffer from insufficient food, clothing, housing, and medical care. Inflation remains a serious problem throughout the country. International aid can deal with only a fraction of the humanitarian problem, let alone promote economic development. In 1999-2000, internal civil strife continued, hampering both domestic economic policies and international aid efforts. Numerical data are likely to be either unavailable or unreliable. Afghanistan was by far the largest producer of opium poppies in 2000, and narcotics trafficking is a major source of revenue.
Electricity - consumption - 480.6 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports - 0 kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports - 90 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - production - 420 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
NA%

hydro:
NA%

nuclear:
NA%

other:
NA%
fossil fuel:
35.71%

hydro:
64.29%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Bentley Subglacial Trench -2,540 m

highest point:
Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.)
lowest point:
Amu Darya 258 m

highest point:
Nowshak 7,485 m
Environment - current issues large areas subject to overpopulation, industrial disasters, pollution (air, water, acid rain, toxic substances), loss of vegetation (overgrazing, deforestation, desertification), loss of wildlife, soil degradation, soil depletion, erosion soil degradation; overgrazing; deforestation (much of the remaining forests are being cut down for fuel and building materials); desertification
Environment - international agreements - party to:
Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban

signed, but not ratified:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups - Pashtun 38%, Tajik 25%, Hazara 19%, minor ethnic groups (Aimaks, Turkmen, Baloch, and others) 12%, Uzbek 6%
Exchange rates - afghanis per US dollar - 4,700 (January 2000), 4,750 (February 1999), 17,000 (December 1996), 7,000 (January 1995), 1,900 (January 1994), 1,019 (March 1993), 850 (1991); note - these rates reflect the free market exchange rates rather than the official exchange rate, which was fixed at 50.600 afghanis to the dollar until 1996, when it rose to 2,262.65 per dollar, and finally became fixed again at 3,000.00 per dollar in April 1996
Executive branch - on 27 September 1996, the ruling members of the Afghan Government were displaced by members of the Islamic Taliban movement; the Islamic State of Afghanistan has no functioning government at this time, and the country remains divided among fighting factions

note:
the Taliban have declared themselves the legitimate government of Afghanistan; however, the UN still recognizes the government of Burhanuddin RABBANI; the Organization of the Islamic Conference has left the Afghan seat vacant until the question of legitimacy can be resolved through negotiations among the warring factions; the country is essentially divided along ethnic lines; the Taliban controls the capital of Kabul and approximately two-thirds of the country including the predominately ethnic Pashtun areas in southern Afghanistan; opposing factions have their stronghold in the ethnically diverse north
Exports $6 trillion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) $80 million (does not include opium) (1996 est.)
Exports - commodities the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services opium, fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets, wool, cotton, hides and pelts, precious and semi-precious gems
Exports - partners in value, about 75% of exports from the developed countries FSU, Pakistan, Iran, Germany, India, UK, Belgium, Luxembourg, Czech Republic
Fiscal year - 21 March - 20 March
Flag description - three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and black with a gold emblem centered on the three bands; the emblem features a temple-like structure with Islamic inscriptions above and below, encircled by a wreath on the left and right and by a bolder Islamic inscription above, all of which are encircled by two crossed scimitars

note:
the Taliban uses a plain white flag
GDP GWP (gross world product) - purchasing power parity - $43.6 trillion (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $21 billion (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
4%

industry:
32%

services:
64% (1999 est.)
agriculture:
53%

industry:
28.5%

services:
18.5% (1990)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $7,200 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $800 (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 4.8% (2000 est.) NA%
Geographic coordinates - 33 00 N, 65 00 E
Geography - note - landlocked
Heliports - 3 (2000 est.)
Highways total:
NA km

paved:
NA km

unpaved:
NA km
total:
21,000 km

paved:
2,793 km

unpaved:
18,207 km (1998 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 illicit opium producer, surpassing Burma (potential production in 1999 - 1,670 metric tons; cultivation in 1999 - 51,500 hectares, a 23% increase over 1998); a major source of hashish; increasing number of heroin-processing laboratories being set up in the country; major political factions in the country profit from drug trade
Imports $6 trillion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) $150 million (1996 est.)
Imports - commodities the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services capital goods, food and petroleum products; most consumer goods
Imports - partners in value, about 75% of imports by the developed countries FSU, Pakistan, Iran, Japan, Singapore, India, South Korea, Germany
Independence - 19 August 1919 (from UK control over Afghan foreign affairs)
Industrial production growth rate 6% (2000 est.) -
Industries dominated by the onrush of technology, especially in computers, robotics, telecommunications, and medicines and medical equipment; most of these advances take place in OECD nations; only a small portion of non-OECD countries have succeeded in rapidly adjusting to these technological forces; the accelerated development of new industrial (and agricultural) technology is complicating already grim environmental problems small-scale production of textiles, soap, furniture, shoes, fertilizer, and cement; handwoven carpets; natural gas, oil, coal, copper
Infant mortality rate 52.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) 147.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) all countries 25%; developed countries 1% to 3% typically; developing countries 5% to 60% typically (2000 est.)

note:
national inflation rates vary widely in individual cases, from stable prices in Japan to hyperinflation in a number of Third World countries
NA%
International organization participation - AsDB, CP, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 10,350 (2000 est.) 1 (2000)
Irrigated land 2,481,250 sq km (1993 est.) 30,000 sq km (1993 est.)
Judicial branch - upper courts were non-functioning as of March 1995 (local Shari'a or Islamic law courts are functioning throughout the country)
Labor force NA 10 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agricultue NA%, industry NA%, services NA% agriculture 70%, industry 15%, services 15% (1990 est.)
Land boundaries the land boundaries in the world total 251,480.24 km (not counting shared boundaries twice) 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:
10%

permanent crops:
1%

permanent pastures:
26%

forests and woodland:
32%

other:
31% (1993 est.)
arable land:
12%

permanent crops:
0%

permanent pastures:
46%

forests and woodland:
3%

other:
39% (1993 est.)
Languages - Pashtu 35%, Afghan Persian (Dari) 50%, Turkic languages (primarily Uzbek and Turkmen) 11%, 30 minor languages (primarily Balochi and Pashai) 4%, much bilingualism
Legal system all members of the UN plus Switzerland are parties to the statute that established the International Court of Justice (ICJ) or World Court a new legal system has not been adopted but all factions tacitly agree they will follow Shari'a (Islamic law)
Legislative branch - non-functioning as of June 1993
Life expectancy at birth total population:
63.79 years

male:
62.15 years

female:
65.51 years (2001 est.)
total population:
46.24 years

male:
46.97 years

female:
45.47 years (2001 est.)
Literacy - definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
31.5%

male:
47.2%

female:
15% (1999 est.)
Location - Southern Asia, north and west of Pakistan, east of Iran
Map references World, Time Zones Asia
Maritime claims contiguous zone:
24 NM claimed by most, but can vary

continental shelf:
200-m depth claimed by most or to depth of exploitation; others claim 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin

exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM claimed by most, but can vary

exclusive economic zone:
200 NM claimed by most, but can vary

territorial sea:
12 NM claimed by most, but can vary

note:
boundary situations with neighboring states prevent many countries from extending their fishing or economic zones to a full 200 NM; 43 nations and other areas that are landlocked include Afghanistan, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Czech Republic, Ethiopia, Holy See (Vatican City), Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malawi, Mali, Moldova, Mongolia, Nepal, Niger, Paraguay, Rwanda, San Marino, Slovakia, Swaziland, Switzerland, Tajikistan, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, West Bank, Zambia, Zimbabwe
none (landlocked)
Military branches - NA; note - the military does not exist on a national basis; some elements of the former Army, Air and Air Defense Forces, National Guard, Border Guard Forces, National Police Force (Sarandoi), and tribal militias still exist but are factionalized among the various groups
Military expenditures - dollar figure aggregate real expenditure on arms worldwide in 1999 remained at approximately the 1998 level, about three-quarters of a trillion dollars (1999 est.) $NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP roughly 2% of gross world product (1999 est.) NA%
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49:
6,645,023 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49:
3,561,957 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 22 years of age
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males:
252,869 (2001 est.)
National holiday - Independence Day, 19 August (1919)
Nationality - noun:
Afghan(s)

adjective:
Afghan
Natural hazards large areas subject to severe weather (tropical cyclones), natural disasters (earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions) damaging earthquakes occur in Hindu Kush mountains; flooding; droughts
Natural resources the rapid using up of nonrenewable mineral resources, the depletion of forest areas and wetlands, the extinction of animal and plant species, and the deterioration in air and water quality (especially in Eastern Europe, the former USSR, and China) pose serious long-term problems that governments and peoples are only beginning to address natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, chromite, talc, barites, sulfur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt, precious and semiprecious stones
Net migration rate - 11.11 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Pipelines - petroleum products - Uzbekistan to Bagram and Turkmenistan to Shindand; natural gas 180 km
Political parties and leaders - Taliban (Religious Students Movement) [Mullah Mohammad OMAR]; United National Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan or UNIFSA [Burhanuddin RABBANI, chairman; Gen. Abdul Rashid DOSTAM, vice chairman; Ahmad Shah MASOOD, military commander; Mohammed Yunis QANUNI, spokesman]; note - made up of 13 parties opposed to the Taliban including Harakat-i-Islami Afghanistan (Islamic Movement of Afghanistan), Hizb-i-Islami (Islamic Party), Hizb-i-Wahdat-i-Islami (Islamic Unity Party), Jumaat-i-Islami Afghanistan (Islamic Afghan Society), Jumbish-i-Milli (National Front), Mahaz-i-Milli-i-Islami (National Islamic Front)
Political pressure groups and leaders - Afghan refugees in Pakistan, Australia, US, and elsewhere have organized politically; Mellat (Social Democratic Party) [leader NA]; Peshawar, Pakistan-based groups such as the Coordination Council for National Unity and Understanding in Afghanistan or CUNUA [Ishaq GAILANI]; tribal elders represent traditional Pashtun leadership; Writers Union of Free Afghanistan or WUFA [A. Rasul AMIN]
Population 6,157,400,560 (July 2001 est.) 26,813,057 (July 2001 est.)
Population below poverty line - NA%
Population growth rate 1.25% (2001 est.) 3.48% (2001 est.)

note:
this rate reflects the continued return of refugees from Iran
Ports and harbors Chiba, Houston, Kawasaki, Kobe, Marseille, Mina' al Ahmadi (Kuwait), New Orleans, New York, Rotterdam, Yokohama Kheyrabad, Shir Khan
Radio broadcast stations AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA AM 7 (6 are inactive; the active station is in Kabul), FM 1, shortwave 1 (broadcasts in Pushtu, Dari, Urdu, and English) (1999)
Radios NA 167,000 (1999)
Railways total:
1,201,337 km includes about 190,000 to 195,000 km of electrified routes of which 147,760 km are in Europe, 24,509 km in the Far East, 11,050 km in Africa, 4,223 km in South America, and 4,160 km in North America; note - fastest speed in daily service is 300 km/hr attained by France's Societe Nationale des Chemins-de-Fer Francais (SNCF) Le Train a Grande Vitesse (TGV) - Atlantique line

broad gauge:
251,153 km

standard gauge:
710,754 km

narrow gauge:
239,430 km
total:
24.6 km

broad gauge:
9.6 km 1.524-m gauge from Gushgy (Turkmenistan) to Towraghondi; 15 km 1.524-m gauge from Termiz (Uzbekistan) to Kheyrabad transshipment point on south bank of Amu Darya
Religions - Sunni Muslim 84%, Shi'a Muslim 15%, other 1%
Sex ratio at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
1.02 male(s)/female

65 years and over:
0.78 male(s)/female

total population:
1.05 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
1.08 male(s)/female

65 years and over:
1.12 male(s)/female

total population:
1.06 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
Suffrage - NA; previously males 15-50 years of age
Telephone system general assessment:
NA

domestic:
NA

international:
NA
general assessment:
very limited telephone and telegraph service

domestic:
in 1997, telecommunications links were established between Mazar-e Sharif, Herat, Kandahar, Jalalabad, and Kabul through satellite and microwave systems

international:
satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) linked only to Iran and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); commercial satellite telephone center in Ghazni
Telephones - main lines in use NA 29,000 (1996)

note:
there were 21,000 main lines in service in Kabul in 1998
Telephones - mobile cellular NA NA
Television broadcast stations NA at least 10 (one government run central television station in Kabul and regional stations in nine of the 30 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 the greatest ocean depth is the Mariana Trench at 10,924 m in the Pacific Ocean mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest
Total fertility rate 2.73 children born/woman (2001 est.) 5.79 children born/woman (2001 est.)
Unemployment rate 30% combined unemployment and underemployment in many non-industrialized countries; developed countries typically 4%-12% unemployment (2000 est.) NA%
Waterways - 1,200 km

note:
chiefly Amu Darya, which handles vessels with DWT up to about 500 (2001)
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