Abstract:
Afghanistan faces many problems including terrorism,
instability, corruption, weak institutions, poor governance and
lack of revenue sources. Keeping in view the recent political
and economic history of the country, Afghanistan is likely to
suffer from continued instability and chaos. The discovery of
mineral resources worth nearly three trillion dollars has the
potential to bring prosperity to the country and ultimately be a
source of stability. However, any mishandling of these
minerals can become a currency for greater civil war. On the
other hand, if peace returns, these minerals can bring an
economic revolution not only in Afghanistan, but the entire
region as well. The United States Geology Survey and the
Afghan Geological Survey discovered 24 „Areas of Interest
(AoI)‟ where a variety of minerals, including rare earth
elements (REE), industrial and energy minerals. While this
mineral wealth can turn the country into an economic
powerhouse, decades of war has made this an uphill task. An
economically developed and politically peaceful Afghanistan
offers the promise of supplementing Pakistan‟s steel industry,
subject to good relations between the two neighbours. This
paper provides a summary of some of important areas of
interest, and highlights concerns about the extraction of
minerals in Afghanistan during the post-2014 era
