Afghanistan — Country Profile
Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of Afghanistan: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna Power score (--/100, ranked #-- of 195).
Last updated: October 2026
Afghanistan is a theocratic; the United States does not recognize the Taliban Government in Southern Asia, north and west of Pakistan, east of Iran. It covers 652,230 sq km. Terrain: mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest. Climate: arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers.
| Capital | Kabul |
|---|---|
| Population | 49,474,805 (2025 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $82.238 billion (2023 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $2,000 (2023 est.) |
| Real GDP growth | 2.3% (2023 est.) |
| Inflation | -6.6% (2024 est.) |
| Unemployment | 13.3% (2024 est.) |
| Public debt | 7.8% of GDP (2016 est.) |
| Exports | $1.476 billion (2020 est.) |
| Imports | $6.983 billion (2020 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 54.4 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 18.4 years (2025 est.) |
| Urbanization | 26.9% of total population (2023) |
| Government | theocratic; the United States does not recognize the Taliban Government |
| Independence | 19 August 1919 (from UK control over Afghan foreign affairs) |
| Languages | Afghan Persian or Dari (official, lingua franca) 77%, Pashto (official) 48%, Uzbeki 11%, English 6%, Turkmani 3%, Urdu 3%, Pashaie 1%, Nuristani 1%, Arabic 1%, Balochi 1%, other <1% (2020 est.) |
Afghanistan’s GDP is $82.238 billion (2023 est.) in purchasing-power-parity terms. At official exchange rates it stands at $17.152 billion (2023 est.). Real GDP grew 2.3% (2023 est.). See where Afghanistan ranks among all 195 countries by GDP.
POWER --/100 — The Magna Power score is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — nine components, 135 indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum 0 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
Steadiness was the quarter's defining trait: no rupture, no windfall, no surprise strong enough to move the score.
The trajectory remains set by fundamentals that change over years, not quarters — and this quarter changed little.
- What our model rewards: public debt under 8% of GDP — room to maneuver; 87% of its electricity from low-carbon sources
- What drags it down: a current-account deficit of $3 billion (18.3% of GDP) — living beyond its means; a median age of 18 — a nation of children, its workforce still in the classroom
Natural gas, Oil, Coal, Copper, Barite, Sulfur, Lead, Zinc, Iron ore, Salt.
Energy is the physical base of economic power — what a country can generate, move and burn decides what it can build, sell and defend.
| Electricity access | 85.3% (2022 est.) |
|---|---|
| Installed capacity mix (CIA) | fossil fuels: 13.3% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); solar: 9.7% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); hydroelectricity: 77% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) |
| Energy consumption per capita (CIA) | 3.38 million Btu/person (2023 est.) |
| Primary energy consumption (OWID) | 41.1 TWh (2023) |
| Electricity generation (OWID) | 1.0 TWh (2023) |
| Energy per capita (OWID) | 990 kWh per person (2023) |
| Electricity generation mix (OWID) | Hydro 77.3%, Oil 10.3%, Solar 9.3%, Coal 3.1% (2023) |
| Low-carbon share of electricity (OWID) | 86.6% (2023) |
| Carbon intensity of electricity (OWID) | 123.7 gCO2/kWh (2023) |
Sources: CIA World Factbook, Energy section; Our World in Data (IEA/Ember), 2023.
Trade shows what the world buys from a country and what the country must buy from the world — the balance between the two is a direct measure of economic leverage.
| Exports | $1.476 billion (2020 est.) |
|---|---|
| Imports | $6.983 billion (2020 est.) |
| Trade balance (calculated) | Deficit of $5.5 billion (2020), calculated from the CIA export and import figures above. |
| Key industries | small-scale production of bricks, textiles, soap, furniture, shoes, fertilizer, apparel, food products, non-alcoholic beverages, mineral water, cement; handwoven carpets; natural gas, coal, copper |
Source: CIA World Factbook, Economy section.
Mohammad Hasan Akhund — Acting Prime Minister. Taliban Leader HAYBATULLAH Akhundzada (since 15 August 2021)
Afghanistan maintains 29 embassies and 14 consulates abroad, hosts 38 foreign diplomatic missions, holds permanent missions to EU/NATO Brussels, OPCW The Hague, UN Geneva, UN New York, UNESCO Paris. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 29 |
|---|---|
| Consulates abroad | 14 |
| Foreign missions hosted | 38 |
| Multilateral missions | EU/NATO Brussels, OPCW The Hague, UN Geneva, UN New York, UNESCO Paris |
Source: Outbound: Consular Affairs Center (Yonsei Univ.), diplomatic & consular networks database, January 2026 report (Zenodo). Hosted: Wikipedia 'List of diplomatic missions in Afghanistan' (older snapshot). Multilateral: Wikipedia 'List of diplomatic missions of Afghanistan'.
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Landlocked — no seacoast; exports move through transit corridors across neighbouring countries. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 68 + 8 heliports (registration prefix YA) |
| Pipelines | 466 km gas (2013) |
Major airports
Ahmad Shah Baba International Airport (KDH) — Kandahar; Herat - Khwaja Abdullah Ansari International Airport (HEA) — Guzara; Kabul International Airport (KBL) — Kabul; Mazar-i-Sharif International Airport (MZR) — Mazar-i-Sharif; Khost International Airport (KHT) — Khost.
Terminals
| River ports | Hairatan, Qizil Qal`ah (Amu Darya) |
|---|
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28); theodora.com CIA mirror (CIA World Factbook Transportation section), scraped 2026-10-02
| Political system | theocracy |
|---|---|
| Next election | No election currently scheduled. |
POWER --/100 Ranked #-- of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for Afghanistan.
Historical timeline of Afghanistan
This profile covers the population, economy, natural resources, leaders, and history of Afghanistan — with the Bureau’s live national-power score of --/100, ranking #-- of 195 countries.
What is Afghanistan's power score?
Afghanistan has a Magna Power score of --/100. The score measures structural power — the proven capacity to shape events — across nine components.