Islamic countries

Islamic countries

ISLAMIC STATE OF AFGHANISTAN
DOWLAT-E ESLAMI-YE AFGHANESTAN

General Information

Total Land Area:	652,090 km²
Land boundaries:	5,529 km
Coastline:	0 km (landlocked)
Capital:	Kabul
Other Large Cities:	Kandahar, Herat, Mazar-i-Sharif
Official Language:	Pashtu and Dari
National Currency Unit:	Afghani (AFA)
National Day:	August 19

Location and Geography

Afghanistan is located in Central Asia. It has borders with Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan in the North, China in the North-east, Pakistan in the East and South, and Iran in the West. The country is split from East to West by the Hindu Kush mountain range culminating in the East to the height of 7315 m. With the exception of the South-west regions, most of the country’s landscape is dominated by high snow-capped mountains and traversed by deep valleys. The principal rivers drain to the South-west into the Helmand and Arghandab valleys and then into the desert. The country has a typical continental dry climate, characterised by seasonal and daily extremes of temperature and clearly defined seasons. Winters are cold and summers are very hot.

Demography

Population:	23.30 million (2002)
Crude Birth Rate:	49 per thousand people (2002)
Crude Death Rate:	21 per thousand people (2002)
Infant Mortality Rate:	165 per thousand (2002)
Life Expectancy:	Male: 43 years, Female: 44 years (2002)
Urban Population:	23.0 percent (2002)
Adult Literacy:	42.50 percent (1998)

Economy

Afghanistan is an agricultural country with the majority of its population engaged in this sector. Although only about 20 percent of the total land area is economically useful, agriculture and animal husbandry are by far the most important components of the national product. The major cultivated crop is wheat. Other products are fruits, nuts, wool and mutton. Industry is based on agricultural and pastoral raw materials. Natural resources are natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper ore and sulphur, lead and zinc, talc, barytes, salt, precious stones and iron ore. The country is also potentially rich in hydroelectric resources. Natural gas is its major export commodity. There is a small-scale production of textiles, soap, furniture, shoes, fertilisers, cement, copper and hand woven carpets.

GDP at Current Market Prices:	11800 million US$ (1990)
Per Capita GDP:	799 US$ (1990)
Share of Sectors in GDP:	52.0% Agriculture, 24.1% Industry, 23.9% Services, (2002)
Total Exports:	99 million US$ (2002)
Total Imports:	636 million US$ (2000)
Major Exports Items:	Fruits and nuts, hand-woven carpets, wool, cotton, hides and natural gas
Major Imports Items:	Foodstuff and petroleum products
Major Trading Partners:	Pakistan, India, South Korea and Japan