19 August 1919 (from UK control over Afghan foreign affairs)
7 September 1822 (from Portugal)
Religions
Sunni Muslim 80%, Shia Muslim 19%, other 1%
Roman Catholic (nominal) 73.6%, Protestant 15.4%, Spiritualist 1.3%, Bantu/voodoo 0.3%, other 1.8%, unspecified 0.2%, none 7.4% (2000 census)
Languages
Afghan Persian or Dari (official) 50%, Pashto (official) 35%, Turkic languages (primarily Uzbek and Turkmen) 11%, 30 minor languages (primarily Balochi and Pashai) 4%, much bilingualism
Portuguese (official and most widely spoken language); note - less common languages include Spanish (border areas and schools), German, Italian, Japanese, English, and a large number of minor Amerindian languages
Exports
opium, fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets, wool, cotton, hides and pelts, precious and semi-precious gems
transport equipment, iron ore, soybeans, footwear, coffee, autos
External Debt
$1,280,000,000 $
$397,500,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
afghanis (AFA) per US dollar - 50 (2007), 46 (2006), 47.7 (2005), 48 (2004), 49 (2003)
reals (BRL) per US dollar - 1.8644 (2008 est.), 1.85 (2007 est.), 2.1761 (2006), 2.4344 (2005), 2.9251 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
1.900%
1.700%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
1
15
Location
Southern Asia, north and west of Pakistan, east of Iran
Eastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean
