Global InformationEconomy of Afghanistan information
 Kabul, the economic capital of Afghanistan | |
| Currency | Afghani (AFN) |
|---|---|
Fiscal year | 21 December – 20 December |
Trade organizations | ECO, SAARC, SCO (observer) and WTO |
Country group |
|
| Statistics | |
| Population |  41,000,000 (2024) |
| GDP |
|
| GDP rank |
|
GDP growth |
|
GDP per capita |
|
GDP per capita rank |
|
GDP by sector |
|
Inflation (CPI) | 3% (2024)[4] |
Population below poverty line |
|
Human Development Index |  0.380 low (2024) |
Labor force |
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Labor force by occupation |
|
| Unemployment |  28% (2024)[3] |
Main industries | small-scale production of textiles, soap, furniture, shoes, fertilizer, apparel, food-products, non-alcoholic beverages, mineral water, cement; handwoven carpets; natural gas, coal, copper |
| External | |
| Exports |
|
Export goods | fruits, nuts, rugs, wool, cotton, hides, gemstone, and medical herbs[10] |
Main export partners |
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| Imports | $1.8 billion (2024)[9][3] |
Import goods | machinery and other capital goods, food, textiles and petroleum products |
Main import partners |
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Current account | $1.0 billion (2024)[3] |
Gross external debt | $8.0 billion (2024)[12][13] |
| Public finances | |
Government debt | 115% of GDP (2024)[3] |
Budget balance | −15.1% (of GDP) (2024)[3] |
| Revenues | 500 million (2024)[3] |
| Expenses | 1.7 billion (2024)[3] |
Foreign reserves | $5.4 billion (2024)[14] |
Main data source: CIA World Fact Book All values, unless otherwise stated, are in US dollars. | |
The economy of Afghanistan is listed as the 155th largest in the world in terms of nominal gross domestic product (GDP), and 137th largest in the world in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP). With a population of around 41 million people, Afghanistan's GDP (nominal) stands at $6.81 billion as of 2024, amounting to a GDP per capita of $200 (according to a World Bank report). Its annual exports exceed $1.0 billion, with agricultural, mineral and textile products accounting for 94% of total exports. The nation's total external debt is $8.0 billion as of 2024. Afghanistan’s (GDP) nominal is projected to fall to $5.79 billion & GDP per capita $142 (according to IMF report) for the financial year 2025.
The Afghan economy continues to improve due to the influx of expats, establishment of more trade routes with neighboring and regional countries,[15][16] and expansion of the nation's agriculture, energy and mining sectors.[17][18][19] The billions of dollars in assistance that came from expats and the international community saw this increase when there was more political reliability after NATO became involved in Afghanistan.[20][21]
Despite holding over one trillion dollars in proven untapped mineral deposits, Afghanistan remains one of the least developed countries in the world. Its unemployment rate is over 23%[3] and about half of its population lives below the poverty line.[3][22] The main factor behind this has been the continuous war in the country, which deterred business investors and left much of the population fighting among each other instead of catching up with the rest of the world.[23] Afghanistan has long sought foreign investment in order to improve its economy.[24] The population of Afghanistan increased by more than 50% between 2001 and 2014, while its GDP grew eightfold.[25] After the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and the Taliban's return to power in 2021, the Biden administration decided to confiscate or withhold $5.3 billion worth of assets from the Afghanistan Central Bank to stop the Taliban from accessing it.[26][27][28]
The official currency of Afghanistan is the afghani (AFN), which has an exchange rate of around 70 afghanis to 1 United States dollar.[29][30][31] The country has a central bank called Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB). A number of local banks also operate in the country, including the Afghanistan International Bank, Azizi Bank, New Kabul Bank and Pashtany Bank.
- ^ a b c d "World Bank Database, 2021". World Bank. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
- ^ "Global Economic Prospects, June 2020". World Bank. p. 98. Retrieved 2020-06-24.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Cite error: The named reference
CIAWFAFwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "World Economic Outlook Database, October 2019". International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 2019-11-03.
- ^ "Poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines (% of population)". World Bank. Retrieved 2019-02-11.
- ^ "Poverty headcount ratio at $1.90 a day (2011 PPP) (% of population) - Afghanistan". World Bank. Retrieved 2019-11-03.
- ^ "Labor force, total - Afghanistan". World Bank. Retrieved 2019-11-03.
- ^ "Employment to population ratio, 15+, total (%) (national estimate)". World Bank. Retrieved 2019-08-30.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
TOLO-182736was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Afghanistan". The Observatory of Economic Complexity. 2019. Retrieved 2021-03-18.
- ^ a b "Foreign trade partners of Afghanistan". The Observatory of Economic Complexity. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
- ^ "Afghanistan $1.4B in Debt to Foreign Countries, Organizations". TOLOnews. August 30, 2022. Retrieved 2022-08-30.
- ^ "Afghanistan Faces $1.4 Billion in Foreign Debt amid Economic Downturn". Khaama Press. August 31, 2022. Retrieved 2022-08-31.
- ^ "Central Bank Reports Increase In Foreign Exchange Reserves". TOLOnews. 30 March 2019. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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TOLO-180913was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Economic Impact of 20-Year Intl Presence in Afghanistan". TOLOnews. September 1, 2021. Retrieved 2022-08-30.
- ^ "1.3 Million Afghan Refugees Return Home in Past 20 Months". Khaama Press. May 29, 2023. Retrieved 2023-05-30.
- ^ "Afghanistan receives $3.3b remittances from expats". Pajhwok Afghan News. October 19, 2007. Archived from the original on February 3, 2020. Retrieved 2012-11-23.
- ^ "Afghanistan Unemployment rate - data, chart". TheGlobalEconomy.com. Retrieved 2019-09-21.
- ^ "200,000 Afghans Face Moderate to Severe Malnutrition in Past Month". TOLOnews. August 26, 2022. Retrieved 2022-08-30.
- ^ "Ministry Puts Up 8 Mines for Tender, Says '200' Investors Interested". TOLOnews. August 25, 2022. Retrieved 2022-08-30.
- ^ Coll, Steve (2019). Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Penguin Group. pp. 661–662. ISBN 9780143132509. cf. "Population, total–Afghanistan". World Bank. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
- ^ "The US and Taliban are negotiating the release of part of the $9.5 billion in frozen Afghan government assets, report says". Business Insider. July 26, 2022. Retrieved 2022-08-30.
- ^ "US freezes Afghan central bank's assets of $9.5bn". Al Jazeera. August 18, 2021. Retrieved 2022-08-30.
- ^ "U.S. Freezes Nearly $9.5 Billion Afghanistan Central Bank Assets". Bloomberg News. August 17, 2021. Retrieved 2022-08-30.
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