Geography -Urbanization: urbanization population: 24% of

the total population

-Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Texas rate of urbanization: 5.4% annual rate of change

-Location: Southern Asia, north and west of

Pakistan, east of Iran

-Border countries: China 76 km, Iran 936 km,

Pakistan 2,430 km, Tajikistan 1,206 km,
Turkmenistan 744 km, Uzbekistan 137 km

-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

-Environment - current issues:

limited natural fresh water resources; inadequate
supplies of potable water; soil degradation;
overgrazing; deforestation (much of the
remaining forests are being cut down for fuel
and building materials); desertification; air and
water pollution

-Land use:
arable land: 12.13%
permanent crops: 0.21%
other: 87.66%

-Irrigated land:
27,200 sq km

-Total renewable water resources:

65 cu km

-Freshwater withdrawal
(domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 23.26 cu km/yr (2%/0%/98%)
per capita: 779 cu m/yr

-Natural hazards:
damaging earthquakes occur in Hindu Kush
mountains; flooding; droughts
Demographics
-Life expectancy at birth:
-Religions: total population: 44.64 years
Islam: 99.7% of the total population male: 44.47 years
Sunni Muslim: 80-89% female: 44.81 years (2009 est.)
Shi'a Muslim: 10-19%
Other: less than 1% -Major infectious diseases:
Sikhism: In the thousands Degree of risk: high
Hinduism: In the thousands Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and
protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid
-Ethnic groups: fever
Pashtun 42%, Tajik 27%, Hazara 9%, Uzbek Vectorborne diseases: malaria
9%, Aimak 4%, Turkmen 3%, Baloch 2%, other Animal contact diseases: rabies
4%
-Military obligiations:
Age structure: 22 years of age; inductees are contracted into
0–14 years: 44.5% (male 7,064,670; female service for a 4-year term
7,300,446)
15–64 years: 53% (male 9,147,846; female -Roads:
8,679,800) total: 42,150 km
65 years and over: 2.4% (male 394,572; female paved: 12,350 km
422,603) unpaved: 29,800 km

-Average age (male): 18.2 years -School life expectancy (projected years of
education a child will receive in their life):
-Average age (female): 18.2 years total: 9 years
male: 11 years
-Population growth rate:2.471% female: 7 years
-Literacy (age 15 and over can read and write):
-Birth rate: 38.11 births/1,000 population total population: 28.1%
male: 43.1%
-Total fertility rate:5.39 children born/woman female: 12.6%

-Death rate: 17.65 deaths/1,000 population

-Net migration rate: 21 migrant(s)/1,000

population

-Sex ratio
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15–64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female
total population: 1.05 male(s)/female

-Infant mortality rate:

total: 151.95 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 156.01 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 147.7 deaths/1,000 live births
Economy small-scale production of textiles, soap,
furniture, shoes, fertilizer, apparel, food-
-GDP - per capita (PPP): products, non-alcoholic beverages, mineral
$1,000 water, cement; handwoven carpets; natural gas,
note: data are in 2010 US dollars coal, copper

-GDP - composition by sector: -Exports - commodities:

agriculture: 31% opium, fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets,
industry: 26% wool, cotton, hides and pelts, precious and semi-
services: 43% precious gems
note: data exclude opium production
-Exports - partners:
-Labor force: US 26.47%, India 23.09%, Pakistan 17.36%,
15 million (est) Tajikistan 12.51% (2009)

-Labor force - by occupation: -Imports - commodities:

agriculture: 78.6% machinery and other capital goods, food,
industry: 5.7% textiles, petroleum products
services: 15.7%
-Imports - partners:
-Unemployment rate: Pakistan 26.78%, US 24.81%, India 5.15%,
35% Germany 5.06%, Russia 4.04% (2009)

-Population below poverty line: Currency:

36% Afghanis (AFA) per US dollar - 50 (2009),
50.25 (2008), 50 (2007), 46 (2006), 47.7 (2005),
-Inflation rate (consumer prices): 48 (2004)
13.3%

-Agriculture - products: opium, wheat, fruits,

nuts; wool, mutton, sheepskins, lambskins

-Wages:

In afghanistan the daily wage is about $1.5-2.0

for labours, if they could find work to do;but
many of them pass several days without
employment; and for school teacher or
governmental employee salary is $75.0 per
month. And for engineers or foreigner
companies employee salary is about $800.0 to
4000.0 maonthly.and around $35000.0 for
ministry positions.
The one who came from foreign countries have
opportunity to have salary about $4000.0 to
unknown value according to his relationship
with the employers or USA and UN agencies.

-Industries:
Background:

Ahmad Shah DURRANI unified the Pashtun tribes and founded Afghanistan in 1747. The country served
as a buffer between the British and Russian Empires until it won independence from notional British
control in 1919. A brief experiment in democracy ended in a 1973 coup and a 1978 Communist counter-
coup. The Soviet Union invaded in 1979 to support the tottering Afghan Communist regime, touching off
a long and destructive war. The USSR withdrew in 1989 under relentless pressure by internationally
supported anti-Communist mujahedin rebels. A series of subsequent civil wars saw Kabul finally fall in
1996 to the Taliban, a hardline Pakistani-sponsored movement that emerged in 1994 to end the country's
civil war and anarchy. Following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in New York City and
Washington, D.C., a US, Allied, and anti-Taliban Northern Alliance military action toppled the Taliban
for sheltering Osama BIN LADIN. The UN-sponsored Bonn Conference in 2001 established a process for
political reconstruction that included the adoption of a new constitution, a presidential election in 2004,
and National Assembly elections in 2005. In December 2004, Hamid KARZAI became the first
democratically elected president of Afghanistan and the National Assembly was inaugurated the
following December. Karzai was re-elected in August 2009 for a second term. Despite gains toward
building a stable central government, a resurgent Taliban and continuing provincial instability -
particularly in the south and the east - remain serious challenges for the Afghan Government.

Law and order:

The National Security Directorate, Afghanistan's national security agency, has been accused of running its
own prisons, torturing suspects, and harassing journalists. The security forces of local militias, which also
have their own prisons, have been accused of torture and arbitrary killings. Warlords in the north have
used property destruction, rape, and murder to discourage displaced Pashtuns from reclaiming their
homes. Child labor and human trafficking remain common outside Kabul. Civilians frequently have been
killed in battles between warlord forces. Poor conditions in the overcrowded prisons have contributed to
illness and death amongst prisoners; a prison rehabilitation program began in 2003. There have also been
various human rights abuses by American soldiers on Afghan civilians, most notably in the Baghram
prisons where innocent civilians endured torture, humiliating conditions, and inhumane treatment.
In the absence of an effective national judicial system, the right to judicial protection has been
compromised as uneven local standards have prevailed in criminal trials. Fair trial principles are
enshrined in the Afghan constitution and the criminal procedure but frequently violated for various
reasons, including the lack of well-educated, professional staff (especially defence lawyers), lack of
material resources, corruption and unlawful interference by warlords and politicians. [2]

Freedom of speech and the media:

The government has limited freedom of the media by selective crackdowns that invoke Islamic law and
has encouraged self-censorship. The media remain substantially government-owned. The nominally lesser
restrictions of the 2004 media law have been criticized by journalists and legal experts, and harassment
and threats continued after its passage, especially outside Kabul.

Religious freedom:

No registration of religious groups is required; minority religious groups are able to practice freely but not
to proselytize. Islam is the official religion, all law must be compatible with Islamic morality, and the
President and Vice President must be a Muslim.
Women's rights:

Women and girls continued to face widespread discrimination, domestic violence, and abduction and rape
by armed individuals. They continued to be trafficked, traded in settlement of disputes and debts, and
forced into marriages, including under-age marriages. In some instances women and girls were
specifically targeted for attack by the Taleban and other armed groups.

The Constitution promises equal rights for men and women, and women are permitted to work outside the
home, to engage in political activity, and the Constitution requires each political party to nominate a
certain number of female candidates. During the time of Taliban rule, women had virtually all their rights
taken away. Matters ranging from wearing nail polish to job opportunities were severely restricted. By
keeping women indoors, the Taliban claimed to be keeping them safe from harm.

-March 2009, the Shi’a Personal Status Law, which contained several discriminatory provisions against
Shi’a women, was passed. The law was amended in July following criticism by Afghan women’s groups
and the international community. Some discriminatory provisions remained.
- August 2009, the Elimination of Violence Against Women law was passed by the Afghan President and
Cabinet. The law criminalized violence against women, including domestic violence. Parliamentary
approval of the law remained pending.

Sexual orientation
Homosexuality and cross-dressing were capital crimes under the Taliban, but seem to have been reduced
to crimes punished by long prison sentences.

Life in an Afghan village:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4237756.stm

^ It details the different aspects of village life in Afghanistan, takes many

pages so I did not include in on this document. I believe it will be more helpful
to our project than what I have already included in this document.

Pitt Meadows has a population of ~17,800

Different towns will determine our ethnic groups, language, jobs, living conditions,
and more. This may require some discussion, but I believe it is best if we choose a
town that has a more rural setting (with less than the population of Pitt Meadows)
as it will be easier to use in accordance to the article on village life. Towns and
villages near Kabul/ Kabul Province will be the best to emulate. The conditions are
less extreme and we have more accurate information on how people live. There are
a few towns in that area that are close to Pitt Meadows population, however, I have
not decided on a single one yet.

Feel free to make any additions to this document, it is public.