Asian Development Bank and Afghanistan: Fact Sheet

Abstract

Updated yearly, this ADB Fact Sheet provides social and economic indicators on Afghanistan as well as concise information on ADB's operations in the country and contact information. Afghanistan is the poorest country in the entire Asia and Pacific region. The United Nations Development Programme’s Human Poverty Index ranks Afghanistan at the very bottom of 135 countries in terms of human deprivation, characterized by short life, lack of basic education, and lack of access to public and private resources. Despite significant development gains since the 2001 ouster of the former Taliban regime, the people of Afghanistan continue to suffer widespread and growing insecurity; weak governance; inadequate health care, education, and other public services; and gender inequality. Lack of employment opportunities and endemic poverty continue among a large segment of the population, with two thirds of the population living below or just above the country’s official poverty line. To confront the country’s many development challenges, the Afghan authorities, with strong international support, have embarked on an ambitious program of state building, including democratic political normalization, modernization of the army and police, rehabilitation of infrastructure, restoration of basic services, and institutional reform. Despite measured progress, Afghanistan will have difficulty achieving the internationally agreed Millennium Development Goals for poverty reduction.