Country explorer: Afghanistan
EXPERIMENTAL
2024
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Overview
Afghanistan is a mountainous, low-income country in South Asia with a medium-sized population. Its economy has been volatile in recent decades, and is based on agriculture, mining and manufacturing.
In 2001, the U.S. [invaded Afghanistan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_invasion_of_Afghanistan), leading to a new government and global aid for rebuilding. By 2021, the international forces' withdrawal allowed the Taliban to retake control, sparking a [humanitarian and economic crisis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aftermath_of_the_Afghanistan_War_\(2001%E2%80%932021\)#Humanitarian_crisis), worsened by sanctions and aid cuts.
Economy
Afghanistan's economy has been severely impacted by decades of conflict, with the country ranking among the poorest in the world. The withdrawal of international troops in 2021 and the Taliban's return to power have further exacerbated economic challenges.
Demographics
Afghanistan has experienced rapid population growth, significant fluctuations in net migration, a gradual decrease in fertility rates, and an improvement in life expectancy, reflecting complex societal transformations amidst ongoing conflict and instability, mirroring trends in some low-income countries but with distinct challenges accentuated by its geopolitical context.
Basic needs
Afghanistan has shown gradual improvements in access to basic needs such as clean cooking fuels, electricity, and safely managed drinking water, albeit from extremely low baselines, reflecting ongoing but slow societal progress amid challenges incomparable to most of its peers.
Human development
Afghanistan has experienced gradual progress in human development as evidenced by improvements in the Human Development Index (HDI), reductions in child mortality rates, and increases in literacy and average learning-adjusted years of schooling, though remaining below the averages for low-income countries and its regional peers, reflecting the enduring impacts of conflict and socio-economic challenges.
Environment & energy
Afghanistan has seen modest fluctuations in its carbon emissions, a steady shift towards renewable energy sources, decreasing renewable freshwater resources per capita, and stable forest area, reflecting a challenging yet slowly progressing environmental and energy landscape common among low-income countries but distinct in its gradual embrace of solar and bioenergy amidst resource scarcity.
Technology & innovation
Afghanistan has experienced significant developments in technology and innovation, with noticeable increases in internet usage and mobile phone subscriptions despite the absence of research & development data and lower scientific publication rates compared to regional peers, indicating gradual progress within a challenging context.
Culture & society
Afghanistan remains one of the most gender-unequal countries in the world, and self-reported life satisfaction has decreased across recent decades to become the lowest in the world by a substantial margin.
Governance
Afghanistan has experienced tumultuous shifts in governance, reflected by varying metrics indicating brief improvements in law adherence, corruption perception, civil liberties, and press freedom, only to be followed by significant declines amid ongoing political instability, distinguishing it from its peers with its highly volatile journey toward governance reform.