Communications

Overview

In 2004 Afghanistan had an estimated 50,000 main telephone lines and 600,000 cellular phones. In 2002–3 two foreign-owned mobile telephone companies began operations, bringing investment commitments of US$180 million and heralding a significant improvement in national telecommunications. Both cellular networks have been unreliable in their first years of operation, however. In the early 2000s, expansion occurred almost entirely in mobile phones; between 2002 and 2004, only 7,000 new landlines went into service. The number of Afghans with Internet access increased rapidly between 2000 and 2005, multiplying from an estimated 1,000 to 25,000. In 2004 public Internet facilities were available in Herat, Kabul, Kandahar, and Mazar-e Sharif. However, in 2005 Internet cafés in Kabul increasingly were targeted by terrorist attacks.

Mass Media

In 2005 Afghanistan had an estimated 45 FM radio stations and about 10 television stations. Radio is the most widespread source of information. In 2003 an estimated 37 percent of Afghan citizens, mainly in urban centers, had access to a local radio station. A government-run national television station and seven radio stations were located in Kabul, and nine provinces had regional television stations. Most of the electronic news media are government-owned. In the early 2000s, state-owned Radio Television Afghanistan was the most powerful broadcast outlet. Four cable stations appeared after the overthrow of the Taliban, carrying Indian and U.S. programs. However, in 2003 the Supreme Court banned cable television on moral grounds. In the early 2000s, international nongovernmental organizations supported establishment of more than a dozen new radio stations. Some government officials have used their positions to maintain their own communications facilities. The circulation of independent print publications has been confined to the Kabul region. The 2004 media law requires registration of periodicals with the Ministry of Information and Culture; in 2005 some 250 periodicals were registered. The principal daily newspapers are the state-owned Anis, Arman-e Melli, Eslah, and Kabul Times and the privately owned Eradeh, Hewad, Ittefaq-e Islam, and Shari’at. Because of financial difficulties, all independent print media are dependent on the government or another faction.

Source: Library of Congress – Federal Research Division Country Profile