Provinces of Afghanistan

The provinces of Afghanistan (Pashto and Dari: ولايتwilāyat) are the primary administrative divisions of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. There are 34 provinces in Afghanistan. Each province encompasses a number of districts or usually over 1,000 villages.

Provincial governors played a critical role in the reconstruction of the Afghan state following the creation of the new government under Hamid Karzai. According to international security scholar Dipali Mukhopadhyay, many of the provincial governors of the western-backed government were former warlords who were incorporated into the political system.