Demographics
As of 2011, the population of Afghanistan is around 29,835,392, which includes the roughly 2 million Afghan refugees still living in Pakistan and Iran. In 1979, the population was reported to be about 15.5 million. The only city with over a million residents is its capital, Kabul. The other largest cities in the country are, in order of population size, Kandahar, Herat, Mazar-i-Sharif, Kunduz, Jalalabad, Lashkar Gah, Taloqan, Puli Khumri, Khost, Ghazni, Sheberghan, Sar-e Pol, and Farah. Urban areas are experiencing rapid population growth following the return of over 5 million expats. According to the Population Reference Bureau, the Afghan population is estimated to increase to 82 million by 2050.
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Largest cities or towns of Afghanistan 2010-11 estimate |
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| Rank | City name | Province | Pop. | ||||||
Kabul
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1 | Kabul | Kabul Province | 3,071,400 | Herat
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| 2 | Kandahar | Kandahar Province | 512,000 | ||||||
| 3 | Herat | Herat Province | 397,456 | ||||||
| 4 | Mazar-i-Sharif | Balkh Province | 375,000 | ||||||
| 5 | Jalalabad | Nangarhar Province | 205,423 | ||||||
| 6 | Lashkar Gar | Helmand Province | 201,546 | ||||||
| 7 | Taloqan | Takhar Province | 196,400 | ||||||
| 8 | Khost | Khost Province | 160,214 | ||||||
| 9 | Sheberghan | Jowzjan Province | 148,329 | ||||||
| 10 | Ghazni | Ghazni Province | 141,000 | ||||||
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