6.1 Maidan Wardak Province

6.1 Maidan Wardak Province

Figure 6.1 Wardak Province location (Joshbaumgartner, 2007) Maidan Wardak Province is one of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces, located in the country’s central area. It has an estimated population of 671,817 people and is divided into eight districts. The province’s capital is Maidan Shar, and Saydabad District is the province’s most populous district. During the Taliban onslaught in 2021, the Taliban took control of the province.

Geography Wardak lies in Afghanistan’s central and eastern region, bordering Parwan to the northeast, Kabul and Logar to the east, Ghazni to the south, and Bamyan to the west. Wardak province’s capital is Maidan Shar, which is around 35 kilometers from Kabul. Wardak province has a total area of 9,934 square kilometers. It, like the rest of the country, is mountainous, with plains and numerous valleys, including the Tangi Valley. The vast bulk of the population lives in rural areas. Along the Kabul–Kandahar Highway, the most densely populated places are found. The majority of the province is sparsely populated, with communities clustered around

irrigation and water supplies. The Unai Pass and the Hajigak Pass are two well-known passes.

Climate Wardak has a humid continental climate with dry warm summers and is located at an elevation of 2997.92 meters above sea level. The annual temperature in the city is 4.3°C, which is -11.4% lower than the national average in Afghanistan. Wardak has an average yearly precipitation of 18.92 millimeters and 54.29 wet days (14.87% of the time).[36]

Figure 6.2 Wardak Province_Reference Map (OCHA, 2014)

Figure 6.3 Monthly temperature and precipitation of Wardak in recent years. (Wheater and Climate, 2020)

Economics and Industry In terms of industry, the province has one marble factory, and there are marble mines in the provincial center and Sayed Abad District, though mining is currently prohibited due to a government restriction. In Maidan Shahr, the majority of business activity takes place. Wardak is known for its agricultural and cattle commerce, but stone quarrying is also a growing industry in the region. Maidan Shahr residents are also professionals in karez cleaning and repair, and they go to other parts of the country to do so. Natural resources such as petroleum, iron, rubies, and emeralds abound in Wardak. Agriculture is a substantial source of income for 43 % of Maidan Wardak households. In the province, four-fifths of rural families (79%) own or manage agricultural land or garden plots. However, trade and services provide income to over a quarter (24%) of households in the province, and non-farm-related labor provides income to nearly half (45%) of households.

Education In Wardak province, the general literacy rate is 25%. In the province, there are approximately 251 primary and secondary schools serving 105,358 students. These schools have a total of 2909 teachers.[37]

Figure 6.4 A school in Jalrez, in the Wardak province of Afghanistan is in the final stage of construction (Staff Sgt. Teddy Wade, 2009)