Afghanistan Policy Page

Province Profile - Kandahar

A one-page brief from the Afghanistan Congressional Communications Hub on a major issue concerning U.S. policy and engagement in Afghanistan.

25 February 2010

Take Aways

• Kandahar is a strategic center of gravity in Afghanistan: it was the birthplace of the Taliban movement and it sits at the intersection of the vital lines of communication across the country’s south.

• Insurgents have steadily expanded their control and influence over Kandahar’s population.

• General McChrystal, commander of all NATO and US forces in Afghanistan, has said that after the Marjah offensive, Kandahar is likely to be the next area for major operations against insurgents. AFP

Key Issues

NATO-ISAF Regional Command South – Based outside Kandahar City.

• Command of RC South rotates between Canada, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Currently led by UK Maj. Gen. Nick Philip Carter.

• Some analysts worry that the rotating leadership prevents smooth and effective continuity of military and development operations.

• Canada operates Kandahar’s Provincial Reconstruction Team.

Transport – Kandahar has historically been on regional trading routes, and with its proximity to Pakistan it continues to act as a regional trade hub.

• Afghanistan’s major Ring Road highway passes through Kandahar city.

• Residents have long desired a Ring Road spur so military convoys could bypass the center of town, where civilians have been killed by insurgents’ roadside bombs.

• Kandahar City has a major international airport which is used for supplying the coalition forces as well as a regional civilian travel hub.

Taliban Shadow Government – The Quetta Shura Taliban has made Kandahar one of their primary objectives in their insurgency campaign. They exert authority through a large shadow government presence in Kandahar City.

• Insurgents target Afghan government officials; the police chief was killed last June.

• Much of the province is very unsafe for coalition forces, and Kandahar has seen some of the largest and most advanced roadside bombs.

Development efforts in Kandahar, past and present:

• In the 1950s the United States built large irrigation systems and the Dahla Dam, which forms Lake Dahla, the key reservoir for the province’s agricultural industry.

• Current development efforts are challenged by the deteriorating security situation: international aid organizations and the UN have been targeted by militants.

Agriculture in Kandahar – Field crops and orchards are heavily reliant on Kandahar’s intricate irrigation systems from surface and underground water sources.

• Kandahar’s farms remain very vulnerable to droughts, and one-fourth of Kandahar households rely on agriculture as their main revenue source.

• Land disputes arise from inheritance and disputed deeds from the Taliban, Soviet, and earlier eras. The Taliban often exert their influence in settling these disputes.

• Many farmers are share croppers or long term renters, and can be influenced to grow profitable poppy and marijuana by land-owners affiliated with insurgents as a direct challenge to Kandahar’s legitimate government.

Pashtun Tribes – The history of southern Afghanistan has largely been shaped by rivalries between two Pashtun sub-tribes: the Ghilzai and Durrani. For 200 years, ending in 1973, Afghanistan was ruled by Durrani kings from Kandahar. The tribal system has been significantly weakened by three decades of war.

• Tribal affiliation in Kandahar City is much weaker than the countryside.

• Tribally-based networks remain a mobilizing force in Kandahar’s politics.

• Tribally-based cartels have gained considerable power over two lucrative sources of revenue in Kandahar: contracts from foreign organizations and the opium trade.

Key Facts

• Governor of Kandahar: Tooryalai Wesa

• Provincial Capital: Kandahar City

• Mayor of Kandahar City: Ghulam Hayder Hamidi

• Area: 20,858 square miles, with 16 districts. (slightly smaller than West Virginia)

• Members of Parliament: 14, including 3 women, out of the 249 total Wolesi Jirga members.

Total Kandahar Population: around 913,900

• Around 85% of Kandahar’s population lives in Kandahar City and nearby rural “suburbs.”

• Pashtun is spoken by 98% of the population.

Sewage Infrastructure in Kandahar is poor:

• Only one-fifth of households have access to sanitary toilet facilities; the remainder use traditional latrines or open areas.

• Less than two-thirds of homes use safe drinking water.

Roads in Kandahar are fairly well developed:

• Three-fourths of roads can be open all year, but the remaining close due to seasonal conditions.

Literacy and education in Kandahar are low:

• One quarter of men are literate.

• 5% of women are literate.

• One third of boys are enrolled in school.

• Around 12% of girls are enrolled in school.

Narcotics production remains a problem:

• Kandahar’s poppy production rose 35% between 2008 and 2009 while production has declined by one third nation-wide since 2007.

• 16% of Afghanistan’s poppy is from Kandahar, the second largest producer after Helmand.

Possible Questions

• How is continuity of operations maintained with rotating command of RC South?

• How effective are alternative livelihood programs for poppy famers?

• What is being done to counter the Taliban’s Shadow Government influence?

In the News

A senior provincial official, Abdul Majeed Zazai, was killed by gunmen on motorcycles in Kandahar this week. He was the head of the information and culture department of Kandahar. BBC