Afghanistan's cultivated agricultural land grew by around 10 percent
Afghanistan marks an increase in cultivated agricultural area, both irrigated and rain-fed.
Source: National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA)
Afghanistan's area of cultivated irrigated and rain-fed farmland expanded by about 10 percent, reported Afghanistan's National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA).
The landlocked country had a 3 percent increase in irrigated agricultural land and a 33 percent increase in rain-fed agricultural land, both of which the NSIA attributed to favorable conditions, including well-timed rainfall.
In total, cultivated agricultural area grew by 10.2 percent, measured using remote sensing technology and satellite imagery.
The findings cover the current Solar Hijri year 1405, which began on March 21, 2026, and are measured against the previous year, 1404.
Overall, the NSIA reports, cultivated agricultural area in Afghanistan reached around 3 million hectares (ha), of which 2.1 million ha were irrigated and nearly 874,000 ha rain-fed.
Largest cultivated provinces in Afghanistan, 1405
Cultivated area by province in hectares, for the leading provinces itemized by NSIA. Irrigated and rain-fed land share one scale.
Largest irrigated area (ha)
- Helmand262,000
- Kandahar163,000
- Herat157,000
- Kunduz136,000
Largest rain-fed area (ha)
- Takhar157,000
- Badakhshan116,000
- Herat113,000
- Sar-e Pol86,000
- Badghis85,000
Bars share one scale. Herat appears in both groups. NSIA itemizes only the leading provinces, so this is not the full 34-province picture.
"The largest increase in irrigated agricultural land was recorded in Herat, Ghazni, Zabul, Farah, and Kandahar provinces," stated the official press release.
At the same time, Takhar, Sar-e Pol, Jawzjan, and Badakhshan provinces recorded the most growth in rain-fed cultivated land.
The largest irrigated cultivated areas were found in these provinces: Helmand, with around 262,000 ha, followed by Kandahar with almost 163,000 ha, Herat with about 157,000 ha, and Kunduz with nearly 136,000 ha.
The province with the largest rain-fed cultivated area in the country was Takhar, with nearly 157,000 ha. This was followed by Badakhshan with more than 116,000 ha, Herat with nearly 113,000 ha, Sar-e Pol with more than 86,000 ha, and Badghis with more than 85,000 ha.