Afghanistan - Military

Geography - People - Economy - Government - Communications - Transportation - Military - Transnational Issues

Afghanistan is located Southern Asia, north and west of Pakistan, east of Iran. The climate is arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers. The terrain is mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest.

Military branches

This entry lists the service branches subordinate to defense ministries or the equivalent (typically ground, naval, air, and marine forces).
Military branches - Afghan Armed Forces : Afghan National Army (ANA, includes Afghan National Army Air Corps) (2008)

Military service age and obligation

This entry gives the required ages for voluntary or conscript military service and the length of service obligation.
Military service age and obligation : 22 years of age; inductees are contracted into service for a 4-year term (2005)

Manpower available for military service

This entry gives the number of males and females falling in the military age range for a country (defined as being ages 16-49) and assumes that every individual is fit to serve.
Manpower available for military service - males age 16-49 : 7,431,147
Manpower available for military service - females age 16-49 : 7,004,819 (2008 est.)

Manpower fit for military service

This entry gives the number of males and females falling in the military age range for a country (defined as being ages 16-49) and who are not otherwise disqualified for health reasons; accounts for the health situation in the country and provides a more realistic estimate of the actual number fit to serve.
Manpower fit for military service - males age 16-49 : 4,234,180
Manpower fit for military service - females age 16-49 : 3,946,685 (2008 est.)

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually

This entry gives the number of males and females entering the military manpower pool (i.e., reaching age 16) in any given year and is a measure of the availability of military-age young adults.
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually - male : 371,451
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually - female : 351,295 (2008 est.)

Military expenditures

This entry gives spending on defense programs for the most recent year available as a percent of gross domestic product (GDP); the GDP is calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP).
Military expenditures : 1.9% of GDP (2006 est.)

More Information about the country