Head of state: Queen Elizabeth II, represented by a Governor-General. Prime minister : Peter O'Neill
Population
30,419,928
6,310,129
Life Expectancy
49.720 years
66.460 years
Capital City
Kabul
Port Moresby
Largest city
Kabul (population: 3,043,530)
Port Moresby (population: 283,733)
Human Development Index
0
0.516
GDP per capita
$1,000 US
$2,600 US
Literacy Rate
28.1%
57.3%
Corruption Perception Index
1.5
2
Percentage of Women in Parliament
25.9%
0.9%
Wealthiest Citizens
Unemployment Rate
35.000%
1.900%
Death Penalty
Legal
Abolished in practice
Political System
Islamic republic
constitutional parliamentary democracy
Independence date
19 August 1919 (from UK control over Afghan foreign affairs)
16 September 1975 (from the Australian-administered UN trusteeship)
Religions
Sunni Muslim 80%, Shia Muslim 19%, other 1%
Roman Catholic 27%, Evangelical Lutheran 19.5%, United Church 11.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 10%, Pentecostal 8.6%, Evangelical Alliance 5.2%, Anglican 3.2%, Baptist 2.5%, other Protestant 8.9%, Bahai 0.3%, indigenous beliefs and other 3.3% (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
Melanesian Pidgin serves as the lingua franca, English spoken by 1%-2%, Motu spoken in Papua region note: 820 indigenous languages spoken (over one-tenth of the world's total)
Exports
opium, fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets, wool, cotton, hides and pelts, precious and semi-precious gems
