Overview of the Afghanistan Mining Sector: Accountability and Transparency
Publisher: Ohio Law
Date: 2017
Topics: Extractive Resources, Governance
Countries: Afghanistan
Reports vary as to the value of Afghanistan’s mineral wealth because most of the country’s mines have not been fully explored, resulting in valuations based almost solely on superficial “reconnaissance” studies that do not determine the size and composition of the mine. Figures provided by the U.S. Geological Survey in 2012 place the value at about $1 trillion,while the Afghan government has cited the potentially much higher figure of $3 trillion.However, numerous CSOs active in the sector, such as the Natural Resources Monitoring Network (NRMN), discount the government’s figures, asserting that they are grossly over inflated and that, even if true, poor governance will prevent the people of Afghanistan from benefiting from this latent wealth.