On May 21, 2016, the leader of the Taliban, MullahAkhtar Mansour, was killed in a U.S. drone strikein Pakistan. Mansour served for several years as

the group’s acting head but was only confirmed as theleader in July 2015, when Afghan intelligence revealedthat the leader and founder of the Taliban, MohammadOmar, died sometime in 2013. Mansour was replaced byHibatallah Akhundzada, a religious scholar who has beena part of the Taliban since its emergence in the mid-1990s.

DemographyArea: 252,072 sq mi, 652,864 sq km.Population (2016): 29,666,0005.Density (2016): persons per sq mi 117.6,persons per sq km 45.4.

Sex distribution (2014–15): male51.16%; female 48.84%.

Population projection: (2020)32,614,000; (2030) 40,643,000.

Major cities (2015): Kabul3,543,700; Kandahar (Qan-dahar) 519,400; Herat463,300; Mazar-e Sharif390,900; Konduz 318,900.

Urban-rural (2014–15):

Vital statisticsBirth rate per 1,000 pop-ulation (2015): 38.6(world avg. 19.5).

Death rate per 1,000population (2015): 13.9(world avg. 8.1).

Life expectancy at birth(2015): male 49.5 years;female 52.3 years.

Age breakdown (2015):

Ethnolinguistic composition (2004): Religious affiliation (2009):

Afghanistan

Official name: Islamic Republic of Afghanistan(Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Afghanestan [Dari]); Da Afghanestan Eslami Jamhuriyat (Pashto)1.

Form of government: Islamic republic1 with twolegislative houses (House of Elders [1022];House of the People [2493]).

Head of state and government: President Ashraf Ghani.

Capital: Kabul.Official languages: Dari; Pashto4.Official religion: Islam.Monetary unit: afghani (Af); valuation (Sept. 1,2016) 1 U.S.$ = Af 66.70; 1 £ = Af 88.53.

Population (2014–15 estimate)6population population population

Province (’000) Province (’000) Province (’000)

Badakhshan 935.3Badghis 487.8Baghlan 894.8Balkh 1,298.2Bamian 439.9Daykundi8 417.5Farah 498.9Faryab 981.2Ghazni 1,208.6Ghowr 679.1Helmand 909.4Herat 1,852.8

Jowzjan 530.8Kabol (Kabul) 4,227.3Kandahar 1,200.9Kapisa 433.9Khowst 565.2Konduz 990.9Kunar 443.2Laghman 438.3Lowgar 385.6Nangarhar 1,489.8Nimruz 162.1Nurestan 145.6

Oruzgan 380.1Paktia 542.9Paktika 427.7Panjshir7 151.0Parvan 653.4Samangan 381.5Sar-e Pol 550.2Takhar 966.6Vardak 586.6Zabol 299.1TOTAL 26,556.2

© 2017 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

World DataE N C Y C L O P Æ D I A

Britannica

National economyBudget (2012–13). Revenue: Af 260,600,000,000 (grants 59.8%, domestictax revenue 31.6%, domestic nontax rev-enue 8.6%). Expenditures: Af 188,200,-000,000 (capital expenditure 2.9%, currentexpenditure 97.1%).

Public debt (external, outstanding; 2014):U.S.$1,999,100,000.

Gross national income (2015): U.S.$20,363,-000,000 (U.S.$630 per capita).

Production (metric tons except as noted).Agriculture, forestry, fishing (2014–15):wheat 5,370,259, grapes 744,847, rice537,000, barley 521,000, potatoes 340,257,corn (maize) 316,000, apples 89,403, sugar-cane 75,082, pomegranates 63,375, almonds 27,400, opium poppy(2012) 3,700; livestock (number of live animals) 13,500,000 sheep,7,100,000 goats, 11,100,000 chickens; roundwood (2013) 3,485,812 cu m, of which fuelwood 50%; fisheries production (2012) 2,050(from aquaculture 51%). Mining and quarrying (2013): salt (rock)145,000; marble 67,000; chromite 6,000; lapis lazuli, n.a.Manufacturing (value added in Af ’000,000; 2005–06): food 48,575;chemicals 1,206; cement, bricks, and ceramics 809; textiles, wearingapparel, and fur 569; base metals 139. Energy production (consump-tion): electricity (kW-hr; 2012–13) 880,000 (2,666,000,000), by source(2012): fossil fuels 19.7%; nuclear, none; renewable energy 80.3%, ofwhich hydroelectric 80.3%; coal (metric tons; 2012) 1,240,000 ([2011]1,480,000); crude petroleum (barrels; 2009) c. 20,000 (none); petro-leum products (metric tons; 2012) none ([2011] 2,478,000); natural gas(cu m; 2012) 158,000,000 ([2011] 161,000,000).

Average household size (2003): 8.0.Population economically active (2015): total 10,430,000; participationrates (2011): age 14 and over, male 80.0%; female 18.5%; unemployed8.2%, of which youth, n.a.

Land use as % of total land area (2011): in temporary crops 4.7%, leftfallow 7.2%, in permanent crops 0.2%, in pasture 46.0%, forest area2.1%.

Foreign trade10

Imports (2013–14): U.S.$8,724,084,000 (petroleumproducts 20.0%; food 18.2%, of which wheat 5.4%;machinery and transport equipment 13.7%; fabri-cated metals 11.5%).Major import sources:

Exports (2013–14): U.S.$514,973,000 (dried fruits/nuts 26.6%, of which raisins 7.3%, pistachios 5.0%,almonds 4.5%; high-quality carpets 16.8%; whiteasafoetida 8.7%; licorice roots 4.3%; fresh fruits3.5%)11.Major export destinations:

Transport and communicationsTransport. Railroads (2006): route length6.2 mi, 10 km. Roads (2006): total length26,190 mi, 42,150 km (paved 29%).Vehicles (2014–15):passenger cars1,151,531; trucks andbuses 411,664.

Education and healthLiteracy (2006): percentage oftotal population age 15 andover literate 28.1%; males43.1%; females 12.6%.

Health (2014–15): physicians9,954 (1 per 2,806 persons);hospital beds 14,950 (1 per1,868 persons); infant mortal-ity rate (2015) 115.1.

MilitaryTotal active duty personnel(November 2015): 160,500(army 96.0%, air force4.0%)12. Military expenditureas percentage of GDP (2015):16.4%; per capita expenditureU.S.$99.

1From promulgation of new constitution on Jan. 26, 2004. 2Thirty-four members are appointed by the president, while the remainder are indirectly elected. 3Ten seats arereserved for Kuchis, Afghan Pashtun nomads. 4Six additional locally official languages per the 2004 constitution are Uzbek, Turkmen, Balochi, Kafiri (Nuristani), Pashai, andPamiri. 5Excludes Afghan refugees in Pakistan and Iran but includes nomadic population; the first complete national census since 1979 was conducted in September–October2010. 6Refers to settled population only and excludes refugees in Pakistan and Iran. 7Created in 2004 from part of Parv)n. 8Created in 2004 from part of Oruzg)n. 9Includes taxeson imports. 10Imports c.i.f.; exports f.o.b. 11Exports of illegal opiates equaled c. U.S.$2,800,000,000 in 2009. 12Foreign troops (March 2016): 40-country NATO-sponsored secu-rity and development force 12,905, of which U.S. 6,800, Georgia 870, Germany 850, Italy 829, Romania 650, Turkey 508, United Kingdom 470, Czech Republic 232, Australia239, Poland 200. 13Subscribers.

Internet resource for further information:• Central Statistics Organization cso.gov.af

Structure of gross domestic product and labour force2013–14 2002–03

in value % of total labour % of labourAf ’000,000 value force6 force6

Agriculture, forestry, fishing 294,232 24.6 5,181,400 69.6Mining and quarrying 10,108 0.8Manufacturing 131,420 11.0 362,200 4.9Public utilities 670 0.1Transp. and commun. 292,086 24.4 169,500 2.3Construction 93,868 7.8 98,600 1.3Trade, hotels, restaurants 101,222 8.5 509,600 6.8Finance, real estate 11,897 1.0Public administration 146,018 12.2 1,126,000 15.1Services 32,446 2.7Other 83,2019 6.99

TOTAL 1,197,168 100.0 7,447,300 100.0

}

}

Communications units unitsnumber per 1,000 number per 1,000

Medium date in ’000s persons Medium date in ’000s persons

TelephonesCellular 2015 19,70913 61613

Landline 2015 110 3.4

Internet users 2010 1,256 40Broadband 2015 1.513 —13

© 2017 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

World DataE N C Y C L O P Æ D I A

Britannica