Population and geography
Area: 652,225 km ²
Population: about 32 million
Official language: Dari and Pashto
Capital: Kabul, about 6 million inhabitants (2010)
Cities: Kandahar, 450 300 inhabitants,
Herat, 349 000 inhabitants,
Mazar-e Sharif, 300 600 inhabitants,
Kunduz, 264 000 inhabitants
State: 31 provinces, Prime Minister: Hamid Karzai,
since January 2004 a new constitution
Religion: Muslim 99 % (Sunni 84 %, Shia 15 %)
Refugees (end 2002): 700 000 IDPs
2 million in Iran
1.5 million in Pakistan
11 400 in India
400 000 in Europe
According to UNHCR, 3 million refugees have returned since 2002
Topography: the Hindu Kush (up to 7000 m) crosses the country in south-western direction; in the north, south and south-west across steppes and desert regions; with most of the population living in oases and valleys, where a rural culture established, mainly nomads living in the highland regions and deserts; 22 % of the population in cities.
Highest Mountain: Nowshāk, 7,482 m
Rivers: Amo, Helmund, Konar, Jir, Kabul
Adjacent countries: Iran, Pakistan, China, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan
Cultural Diversity: A variety of ethnic groups and languages (more than 30), among the ethnic groups the Pashtuns are forming the largest (40 %), numerically the second largest group are the Tajiks (25 %), Hazara (15 %), Uzbek (5 %), Aimaq, Turkmen, Baluchis, Qizilbash, Nuristani, Pashai, etc.
Bank account
Empor e.V.
Kreissparkasse München Starnberg Ebersberg
Act. 707 216
(BLZ 702 501 50)
IBAN: DE68702501500000707216
SWIFT-BIC: BYLADEM1KMS