conventional long form: formerly Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
conventional short form: Afghanistan
local long form: formerly Jamhuri-ye Islami-ye Afghanistan
local short form: Afghanistan
former: Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
etymology: the name "Afghan" originally referred to the Pashtun people (today it is understood to include all the country's ethnic groups), while the suffix "-stan" means "place of" or "country"; so Afghanistan literally means the "Land of the Afghans"
the United States does not recognize the Taliban government
name: Kabul
geographic coordinates: 34 31 N, 69 11 E
time difference: UTC+4.5 (9.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: does not observe daylight savings time
etymology: named for the Kabul River, but the river's name is of unknown origin
34 provinces (welayat, singular - welayat); Badakhshan, Badghis, Baghlan, Balkh, Bamyan, Daykundi, Farah, Faryab, Ghazni, Ghor, Helmand, Herat, Jowzjan, Kabul, Kandahar, Kapisa, Khost, Kunar, Kunduz, Laghman, Logar, Nangarhar, Nimroz, Nuristan, Paktika, Paktiya, Panjshir, Parwan, Samangan, Sar-e Pul, Takhar, Uruzgan, Wardak, Zabul
19 August 1919 (from UK control over Afghan foreign affairs)
Independence Day, 19 August (1919)
history: last ratified in 2004
amendments: formerly proposed by a commission formed by presidential decree followed by the convention of a Grand Council (Loya Jirga) decreed by the president; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote of the Loya Jirga membership and endorsement by the president
before the Taliban's takeover of Kabul in August 2021, Afghanistan had a mixed legal system of civil, customary, and Islamic (sharia) law; after August 2021, the Taliban’s so-called “interim government” has claimed to be implementing its own interpretation of Islamic law, partially based on the Hanafi school of Islamic jurisprudence.
(2021)has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; formerly accepted ICCt jurisdiction
citizenship by birth: no
citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must have been born in - and continuously lived in - Afghanistan
dual citizenship recognized: no
residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years
18 years of age; universal
chief of state:
president (vacant); note – before 15 August, 2021, the president was both chief of state and head of government; President Ashraf GHANI departed the country on 15 August 2021; on 7 September 2021, the Taliban announced Mullah Mohammad HASSAN Akhund as the so-called “acting Prime Minister” of a so-called “interim government”; as of November 2021, the group had announced three acting so-called “Deputy Prime Ministers”: Mullah Abdul Ghani BERADER, Mullah Abdul Salam HANAFI, and Maulawi Abdul KABIR
description: before 15 August, 2021, Afghanistan had a bicameral National Assembly that consisted of a House of Elders and a House of People; since August 15, the Taliban’s so-called “interim government” has not purported to announce the formation of a legislative branch
elections: before 15 August, 2021: House of Elders - district councils - held within 5 days of installation; provincial councils - within 15 days of installation; and presidential appointees - within 2 weeks after the presidential inauguration; note - in early 2016, former President Ashraf Ghani extended their mandate until parliamentary and district elections could be held; former House of People - last held on 20 October 2018
election results: before 15 August 2021, House of Elders - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; composition - men 85, women 17, percent of women 16.7%
before 15 August 2021, House of People - percent of vote by party NA; seats by party - NA; composition - men 179, women 69, percent of women 27.7%; note - total National Assembly percent of women 24.4%
highest court(s): the Taliban’s so-called “interim government” has a “Supreme Court” (consisting of a supreme court chief and an unknown number of justices); before 15 August, 2021, Afghanistan had a Supreme Court (consisting of a supreme court chief and 8 justices organized into criminal, public security, civil, and commercial divisions)
judge selection and term of office: the court chief and justices were appointed by the president with the approval of the Wolesi Jirga; court chief and justices served single 10-year terms
subordinate courts: before 15 August 2021, consisted of Appeals Courts; Primary Courts; and Special Courts for issues including narcotics, security, property, family, and juveniles
the Taliban’s so-called “interim government” includes mostly Taliban members and not other political parties; before 15 August, 2021, the Ministry of Justice had licensed 72 political parties as of April 2019
before 15 August, 2021, Afghanistan was a member or participant in the following organizations: ADB, CICA, CP, ECO, EITI (candidate country), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE (partner), SAARC, SACEP, SCO (dialogue member), UN, UNAMA, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
chief of mission: the Afghan Embassy closed in March 2022
chancery: 2341 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 483-6410
FAX: [1] (202) 483-6488
email address and website:
info@afghanembassy.us
https://www.afghanembassy.us/
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d’Affaires: Ian McCARY (since August 2021); note – since 15 August 2021, the United States has not yet made a decision whether to recognize the Taliban or any other entity as the Government of Afghanistan
embassy: Embassy Kabul, operations have been suspended; Department of State’s Afghanistan Affairs Unit operates from Doha, Qatar.
three equal vertical bands of black (hoist side), red, and green, with the national emblem in white centered on the red band and slightly overlapping the other 2 bands; the center of the emblem features a mosque with pulpit and flags on either side, below the mosque are Eastern Arabic numerals for the solar year 1298 (1919 in the Gregorian calendar, the year of Afghan independence from the UK); this central image is circled by a border consisting of sheaves of wheat on the left and right, in the upper-center is an Arabic inscription of the Shahada (Muslim creed) below which are rays of the rising sun over the Takbir (Arabic expression meaning "God is great"), and at bottom center is a scroll bearing the name Afghanistan; black signifies the past, red is for the blood shed for independence, and green can represent either hope for the future, agricultural prosperity, or Islam
note 1: the United States has not recognized the Taliban or any other entity as the government of Afghanistan and, accordingly, continues to display the flag of Afghanistan as set forth in the country's constitution of 2004
note 2: Afghanistan had more changes to its national flag in the 20th century - 19 by one count - than any other country; the colors black, red, and green appeared on most of them
lion; national colors: red, green, black
name: "Milli Surood" (National Anthem)
lyrics/music: Abdul Bari JAHANI/Babrak WASA
note: adopted 2006
total World Heritage Sites: 2 (both cultural)
selected World Heritage Site locales: Minaret of Jam; Buddhas of Bamyan
note: the monumental 6th- and 7th-century statues were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001
NOTE: The information regarding Afghanistan on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Afghanistan 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Afghanistan 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.
This page was last modified 01 Dec 23, Copyright © 23 ITA all rights reserved.