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Badakhshan بدخشان
Capital  • Coordinates	Fayzabad  • 37.118° N 70.580° E
Population (2002)  • Density	715,000 [1]  • /km²
Area	44,059 km²
Time zone	UTC+4:30
Main language(s)	Dari

Badakhshan (Persian: بدخشان Badakhshān) is one of the provinces of Afghanistan, consisting of 29 districts. It is located in the north-east of the country, between the Hindu Kush and the Amu Darya. It is part of the Badakhshan region.

[edit] Geography

Badakshan is primarily bordered by Tajikistan to the north and east. A slim sliver of the province, called the Wakhan Corridor, also extends above northern Pakistan's Chitral to a border with China. The province has a total area of 44,059 km², most of which is occupied by the Hindu Kush and Pamir mountain ranges.

Badakhshan was a stopover on the ancient Silk Road trading path, and China has shown great interest in the province after the fall of the Taliban, helping to reconstruct roads and infrastructure in the province, probably with an interest in the province's mineral wealth.

[edit] Population

Ethnically, the population is mainly Tajiks with an Uzbek and small Kyrgyz minority. According to the 1382 Afghanistan Statistical Yearbook (referring to the year 1381, i.e. March 21, 2002 - March 20, 2003), the province has an estimated population of 715,000 inhabitants.

Unlike most of Afghanistan, the residents of the province are largely Ismaili Shia, rather than Sunni muslims. The ethnic and religious differences with the majority of Afghans were a main reason why the province was so resistant to Taliban control.

[edit] Recent History and Security

Badakhshan was the only province not occupied by the Taliban during their drive to control the country. Burhanuddin Rabbani, a Badakhshan native, and Ahmed Shah Massoud were the last remnants of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance during the peak of Taliban control in 2000 and 2001, and they used the province as their base of operations. The province was about to fall to the Taliban when the American invasion allowed Massoud and his allies in the Northern Alliance to reclaim control of the country with the aid of American military air power and assistance [2][3].

[edit] Economics

Despite massive mineral reserves Badakhshan is one of the most destitute areas in the world. Opium poppy growing is the only real source of income in the province [4], and Badakhshan has once of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the world, due to the complete lack of health infrastructure, inaccessible locations and bitter winters of the province [5].

Most recent mining activity has focused on lapis lazuli, with the proceeds from the lapis mines being used to fund Northern Alliance troops, and before that, anti-Soviet Mujahadeen fighters. Recent geological surveys have indicated the location of gemstone deposits, in particular rubies and emeralds[6]. Exploitation of this mineral wealth could be key to the country's future prosperity. [7]

[edit] Capital City

Fayzabad, the capital of Badakhshan sits on the Kokcha River and has an approximate population of 15,000. The chief commercial and administrative center of NE Afghanistan and the Pamir region, Fayzabad also has rice and flour mills. In winter the city is sometimes isolated by deep snow. In 1979 it was a focus of Afghan guerrillas attempting to repel the Soviet invasion. Fayzabad was taken by Soviet forces in 1980 and became a major Soviet garrison town.

[edit] Politics

The current Governor of the province is Munshi Abdul Majid.

Previously, it was Sayed Amin Tareq.

The districts of Badakhshan

CSO: 1382 Afghanistan Statistical Yearbook of the Central Statistics Office, Afghanistan

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Provinces of Afghanistan

Badakhshan • Badghis • Baghlan • Balkh • Bamyan • Daykundi • Farah • Faryab • Ghazni • Ghor • Helmand • Herat • Jowzjan • Kabul • Kandahar • Kapisa • Khost • Kunar • Kunduz • Laghman • Lowgar • Nangarhar • Nimruz • Nurestan • Oruzgan • Paktia • Paktika • Panjshir • Parvan • Samangan • Sar-e Pol • Takhar • Wardak • Zabul