Afghanistan: Carbon intensity of GDP (kg CO2e per constant 2021 US$ of GDP)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Afghanistan's carbon intensity of GDP (kg CO2e per constant 2021 US$ of GDP) rose US$0.01 on 2023 (from US$0.74 to US$0.76).

Across the 23 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2023), the average change was +US$0.03 and a typical year strayed about US$0.09 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was US$0.23 in 2011 and the biggest yearly fall was US$0.18 in 2012. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is upward, about US$0.04 a year. A straight line explains 88% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2024, Afghanistan had the 27th highest value of the 191 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Afghanistan in the 2024 ranking

• Algeria — 24th of 191: US$0.84
• Congo, Rep. — 25th of 191: US$0.8
• Qatar — 26th of 191: US$0.76
• Bolivia — 28th of 191: US$0.75
• Sudan — 29th of 191: US$0.75
• Saudi Arabia — 30th of 191: US$0.74

What this measures

Annual emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), one of the six Kyoto greenhouse gases (GHG), from the agriculture, energy, waste, and industrial sectors, excluding LULUCF divided by the GDP in constant 2021 US$.

Limitations: Global GHG emissions are currently not directly measurable, but approaches for their estimation exist, and numerous sources exist to supply data for this indicator. Reputable scientific organizations produce these data for use for research, policy analysis, climate negotiations, and broader public communications. The estimated accuracy from fossil fuel combustion and industrial processes are quite high, as quantities of fossil fuels and other emissive materials (such as cement and steel) produced are well known. For these sectors, emissions estimates are roughly accurate to within 10% when aggregated to the global level and between 4% and 35% at the country level (Crippa et al., 2023).

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average using gdp as weights.

All 25 values

Carbon intensity of GDP (kg CO2e per constant 2021 US$ of GDP) in nearby economies

• Algeria — US$0.84 (2024)
• Bahrain — US$0.92 (2024)
• Djibouti — US$0.23 (2024)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — US$0.6 (2024)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — US$1.55 (2024)
• Iraq — US$1.24 (2024)
• Israel — US$0.14 (2024)
• Jordan — US$0.47 (2024)
• Kuwait — US$0.98 (2024)

More environment data for Afghanistan

• Population in largest city — 4.88 million (2025)
• Population in the largest city (% of urban population) — 42.88% (2025)
• Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million — 4.88 million (2025)
• Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million (% of total population) — 11.12% (2025)
• Rural population — 32.47 million (2025)
• Rural population (% of total population) — 74.06% (2025)
• Urban population — 11.37 million (2025)
• Urban population (% of total population) — 25.94% (2025)
• Aquaculture production (metric tons) — 12,170 (2024)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Afghanistan's carbon intensity of GDP (kg CO2e per constant 2021 US$ of GDP)?

US$0.76 in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2000?

It is up 364.81% from US$0.16 in 2000 (6.61% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was US$0.76 in 2021 and the lowest US$0.11 in 2004.

How does Afghanistan rank?

27th highest of 191 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in carbon intensity of GDP (kg CO2e per constant 2021 US$ of GDP) unusual for Afghanistan?

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator EN.GHG.CO2.RT.GDP.KD, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: EDGAR (Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research) Community GHG Database, Joint Research Centre (JRC) - European Commission, uri: https://edgar.jrc.ec.europa.eu/dataset_ghg2024, publisher: JRC European Commission, date published: 2024; International Energy Agency (IEA), uri: https://edgar.j… Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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