Zabul (Pashto/Dari: زابل) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the south of the country. It has a population of 249,000.[4] Zabul became an independent province from neighbouring Kandahar in 1963. Historically, it was part of the Zabulistan region. Qalat serves as the capital of the province. The major ethnic group are Pashtuns. Primary occupations within Zabul are agriculture and animal husbandry.
The province covers an area of 17293 km2. Two-fifths of the province is mountainous or semi mountainous terrain (41%) while more than one quarter of the area is made up of flat land (28%).
The primary ecoregion of the province is the central Afghan mountains xeric woodlands. Common vegetation is listed as dry shrub-land and pistachio. The high mountains of the northern portion of the province are in the Ghor-Hazarajat alpine meadow ecoregion, which is characterized by meadows, willows, and sea buckthorn.[5]
In 2006, the province's first airstrip was opened near Qalat, to be operated by the Afghan National Army, but also for use by commercial aviation. Twice weekly service was scheduled by PRT Air between Qalat and Kabul. The airstrip is not paved.[6] The ANA Chief in Zabul is Major General Jamaluddin Sayed[7]
Zabul Province is bisected by Highway 1 and travelers going between Kandahar and Kabul via road typically pass through the province.[8]
An Afghan National Police officer, right, stands watch over food before distributing it to families Feb. 5, 2012, in Pinzo village, Zabul province, Afghanistan. The food distribution was intended to supplement the villagers winter food reserves from the fall harvest.
The percentage of households with clean drinking water increased from 0% in 2005 to 32% in 2011.
The percentage of births attended to by a skilled birth attendant increased from 1% in 2005 to 5% in 2011.[citation needed]
The overall literacy rate (6+ years of age) increased from 1% in 2005 to 19% in 2011.[citation needed]
The overall net enrollment rate (6–13 years of age) fell from 31.3% in 2005 to 5% in 2011.[citation needed]
As of 2021, the total population of the province is about 391,150,[4] which is mostly a rural tribal society. According to the Naval Postgraduate School, the population is primarily Pashtun, sprinkled throughout around 2,500 remote villages. Major tribal groups include the Tokhi, Hotak, Nasar, Kharoti, Taraki, Ghilji and the Noorzai and Panjpai Durrani.
Pashto is the dominant language in the area. The people of Zabul are overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim. Primary occupations within Zabul are agriculture and animal husbandry.[9]
60.8% of the population lived below the national poverty line, one of the highest figures of all of Afghanistan's provinces.[10]
Zabul is by many indications one of Afghanistan's most conservative provinces.[11]
^Note: "Predominantely" or "dominated" is interpreted as 99%, "majority" as 70%, "mixed" as 1/(number of ethnicities), "minority" as 30% and "few" or "some" as 1%.
