ISLAMABAD, (APP – UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 9th Aug, 2026) Since returning to power in August 2021, the Taliban have centralized control over Afghanistan’s estimated trillion-dollar mineral wealth, treating the sector as a Primary revenue stream rather than a foundation for long-term national development.
According to a research conducted by US-based think tank Jamestown, the Taliban’s management of Afghanistan’s extractive industries operates with severe opacity and closely resembles the group’s former insurgent financing methods. Rather than depositing revenues transparently into public accounts, funds are reportedly being captured by elite networks.
The report notes that in late June, the Taliban leadership deployed approximately 1,000 special forces officers to Badakhshan province to consolidate authority over local mining sites and bring them directly under central command.
Afghanistan holds over 1,400 mineral deposits across its 34 provinces containing critical minerals such as copper, lithium, zinc, lead, antimony, cobalt, and rare earth elements, as estimated by the U.S. Geological Survey. These vast reserves have drawn significant interest from regional and global actors, including the People’s Republic of China (PRC), India, Pakistan, and the United States.
To date, the Taliban have awarded at least 205 mining contracts to more than 150 companies, announcing $6.5 billion in deals in September 2023. In May 2024, the Taliban-controlled Ministry of Mines and Petroleum claimed to have secured over $7 billion in investments from China, Qatar, Türkiye, Iran, and the United Kingdom, though contract terms remain undisclosed.
The sector’s governance suffered a further setback with Afghanistan’s suspension from the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) in June 2024. Transparency declined further following the July 2024 appointment of Hedayatullah Badri—a UN-sanctioned Taliban figure—as Minister of Mines and Petroleum. Official disclosures reveal that while over 95 percent of reported 2024 mining revenues were disclosed during the first seven months of the year, only about $1 million was publicly accounted for over the subsequent five months.
Observers highlight the presence of an internal “mineral mafia” collecting royalties, fees, and direct payments from miners, traders, and exporters. Nangarhar province, rich in talc, chromite, and nephrite, has received the highest concentration of mining contracts under the current administration.
The study emphasizes that short-term, aggressive extraction practices carry significant social and environmental costs. Children as young as eight years old have been documented working in northern coal mines without safety equipment or machinery. Furthermore, local communities in provinces like Takhar and Badakhshan face forced displacement, resource depletion, severe water consumption, and deadly clashes over mineral claims.
The findings indicate that mining serves not as an instrument for public welfare, but as a central mechanism for political control, patronage distribution, and internal power management.
