Afghanistan
|
| Basic Facts |
| Country name |
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 |
| Gevernment type | Islamic republic |
| Capital |
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) |
| Flag description | 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 |
| Currency | afghani (AFA) |
| Internet country code | .af |
| Ports and terminals | Kheyrabad, Shir Khan |
| Agriculture products | opium, wheat, fruits, nuts; wool, mutton, sheepskins, lambskins |
| Industries | small-scale production of textiles, soap, furniture, shoes, fertilizer, cement; handwoven carpets; natural gas, coal, copper |
| Geography |
| Location | Southern Asia, north and west of Pakistan, east of Iran |
| Coordinates | 33 00 N, 65 00 E |
| Continent | Asia |
| Area |
total: 647,500 sq km
land: 647,500 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Boundaries |
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 |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Climate | arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers |
| Terrain | mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest |
| Natural resources | natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, chromite, talc, barites, sulfur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt, precious and semiprecious stones |
| Natural hazards | damaging earthquakes occur in Hindu Kush mountains; flooding; droughts |
| People |
| Population | 31,056,997 (July 2006 est.) |
| Ethnic groups | Pashtun 42%, Tajik 27%, Hazara 9%, Uzbek 9%, Aimak 4%, Turkmen 3%, Baloch 2%, other 4% |
| Religions | Sunni Muslim 80%, Shi'a Muslim 19%, other 1% |
| Languages | 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 |
