Taliban administration launches new mineral survey in Paktika

The Taliban administration has announced the launch of a new geological survey and mapping process in the southern, western and southeastern zones of Afghanistan, a move that comes amid criticism that its mining expansion has brought no benefit to the public.

The Taliban administration’s Ministry of Mines and Petroleum said in a statement today, Saturday, 21 Sunbula, that the mapping will be carried out on a scale of “one to 100,000.” According to the ministry, practical work on the programme has started in Paktika province.

According to the statement, the ministry’s Directorate-General of Survey and Mineral Exploration will, under a five-year plan, examine geological structures, landforms and areas with potential mineral reserves using technical methods. The Taliban administration also said that after separating mineral-rich areas from non-mineralised zones, more detailed studies will begin to assess the economic potential of these areas.

This comes as the Taliban administration has, over the past five years, begun extracting established mineral resources in the northern, northeastern and central zones of the country. Taliban opponents call this process the “looting of Afghanistan’s mines” and say the revenue from extraction has brought no benefit to the people, while local residents are dealing with the environmental consequences of destructive activities.

Paktika is located in southeastern Afghanistan and is one of the provinces bordering Pakistan. The Ministry of Mines and Petroleum is one of the Taliban administration’s key bodies in the management of natural resources, a sector that has repeatedly faced criticism in recent years over transparency, extraction methods and the use of revenues.