responsibilities; the government's authorityto remove cabinet members, including the prime minister, following
the expiration of their term is questionable
Legislative branch: a unicameral parliament consisting of 205
members was chosen by a national shura (council) in January 1993;
non-functioning as of June 1993
Judicial branch: an interim Chief Justice of the Supreme Court has
been appointed by the president in consultation with the prime
minister, but a new court system has not yet been organized
Political parties and leaders: current political organizations
include Jamiat-i-Islami (Islamic Society), Burhanuddin RABBANI,
Ahmad Shah MASOOD; Hizbi Islami-Gulbuddin (Islamic Party), Gulbuddin
HIKMATYAR faction; Hizbi Islami-Khalis (Islamic Party), Yunis KHALIS
faction; Ittihad-i-Islami Barai Azadi Afghanistan (Islamic Union for
the Liberation of Afghanistan), Abdul Rasul SAYYAF;
Harakat-Inqilab-i-Islami (Islamic Revolutionary Movement), Mohammad
Nabi MOHAMMADI; Jabha-i-Najat-i-Milli Afghanistan (Afghanistan
National Liberation Front), Sibghatullah MOJADDEDI;
Mahaz-i-Milli-Islami (National Islamic Front), Sayed Ahamad GAILANI;
Hizbi Wahdat-Khalili faction (Islamic Unity Party), Abdul Karim
KHALILI; Hizbi Wahdat-Akbari faction (Islamic Unity Party), Mohammad
Akbar AKBARI; Harakat-i-Islami (Islamic Movement), Mohammed Asif
MOHSENI; Jumbesh-i-Milli Islami (National Islamic Movement), Abdul
Rashid DOSTAM; Taliban (Religious Students Movement), Mohammad OMAR
note: the former ruling Watan Party has been disbanded
Other political or pressure groups: the former resistance commanders are the major power brokers in the countryside and their shuras (councils) are now administering most cities outside Kabul; tribal elders and religious students are trying to wrest control from them; ulema (religious scholars); tribal elders; religious students (talib)
International organization participation: AsDB, CP, ECO, ESCAP,
FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO,
IMF, Intelsat, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OIC, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO
Diplomatic representation in US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Abdul RAHIM chancery: 2341 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234–3770, 3771 FAX: [1] (202) 328–3516 consulate(s) general: New York consulate(s): Washington, DC
US diplomatic representation: the US does not have an embassy in
Afghanistan (embassy closed January 1989)
Flag: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and black with a gold emblem centered on the three bands; the emblem features a temple-like structure with Islamic inscriptions above and below, encircled by a wreath on the left and right and by a bolder Islamic inscription above, all of which are encircled by two crossed scimitars
Economy———
Economic overview: Afghanistan is an extremely poor, landlocked country, highly dependent on farming (wheat especially) and livestock raising (sheep and goats). Economic considerations have played second fiddle to political and military upheavals during more than 16 years of war, including the nearly 10-year Soviet military occupation (which ended 15 February 1989). Over the past decade, one-third of the population fled the country, with Pakistan and Iran sheltering more than 6 million refugees. Now, only 1.0 million Afghan refugees remain in Pakistan and about 1.3 million in Iran. Another 1 million probably moved into and around urban areas within Afghanistan. Gross domestic product has fallen substantially over the past 15 years because of the loss of labor and capital and the disruption of trade and transport. Millions of people continue to suffer from insufficient food, clothing, housing, and lack of medical care. Numerical data are extremely shaky.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $12.8 billion (1995 est.)
GDP real growth rate: NA%
GDP per capita: $600 (1995 est.)
GDP composition by sector: agriculture: 65% industry: 15% services: 20%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%
Labor force: 4.98 million
by occupation: agriculture and animal husbandry 67.8%, industry
10.2%, construction 6.3%, commerce 5.0%, services and other 10.7%
(1980 est.)
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget:
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Industries: small-scale production of textiles, soap, furniture,
shoes, fertilizer, and cement; handwoven carpets; natural gas, oil,
coal, copper
Electricity: capacity: 480,000 kW production: 550 million kWh consumption per capita: 39 kWh (1993)
Agriculture: wheat, fruits, nuts, karakul pelts; wool, mutton
Illicit drugs: an illicit cultivator of opium poppy and cannabis for the international drug trade; world's second-largest opium producer after Burma (1,250 metric tons in 1995) and a major source of hashish
Exports: $188.2 million (f.o.b., 1991) commodities: fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets, wool, cotton, hides and pelts, precious and semi-precious gems partners: FSU countries, Pakistan, Iran, Germany, India, UK, Belgium, Luxembourg, Czechoslovakia
Imports: $616.4 million (c.i.f., 1991) commodities: food and petroleum products; most consumer goods partners: FSU countries, Pakistan, Iran, Japan, Singapore, India, South Korea, Germany
External debt: $2.3 billion (March 1991 est.)
Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $NA
note: US provided $450 million assistance (1985–93); the UN provides
assistance in the form of food aid, immunization, land mine removal,
and a wide range of aid to refugees and displaced persons
Currency: 1 afghani (AF) = 100 puls
Exchange
