Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Central Statistics Organization

SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC AND ECONOMIC SURVEY 2015

Balkh Central Statistics Organization

For more details, please contact: Name: Mr. Eidmarjan Samoon Phone: +930202104338 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: www.cso.gov.af P.O.Box: 1254, Ansari Watt Kabul,Afghanistan Design: UNFPA Photo: © UNFPA/Ali Mohaqqeq - CSO Afghanistan, 2015 - WHO/Rada Akbar SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC AND ECONOMIC SURVEY 2015 Balkh MESSAGE FROM CSO The Central Statistics Organization of Afghanistan (CSO) is pleased to present the final report of Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey (SDES) project conducted in Balkh Province in 2015. The report provides data on key socio-demographic and economic indicators for Balkh Province aimed to provide Balkh’s planners and policy makers with up-to-date population data disaggregated by sex and age as inputs for provincial and district development planning.

The survey involves an extensive listing and mapping of households in every village and urban area, followed by a comprehensive household survey wherein 50% of households were asked about the socio-demographic and economic characteristics of all household members such as their ages, sex, education, literacy, employment, migration, as well as information about the households and some housing characteristics.

Balkh is the 9th province after Bamiyan, Ghor, Daykundi, Kabul, Parwan, Kapisa, Samangan and Takhar in which the SDES has been successfully rolled out. It is hoped that the data contained herein would be used for evidence-based policy, planning, monitoring, and evaluation of programs.

As in the previous provinces, SDES implementation in Balkh was very challenging but with dedication, hard work, and collective efforts of CSO and UNFPA officials and staff this important endeavor was successfully completed.

We would like to thank the support given by the Provincial Governor and other officials of Balkh Province without which this survey would not be possible. Appreciation also goes to our international partners for their generous financial support and to the survey respondents for providing accurate information to our data collectors.

Engr. Sheer Mohammad Jamizada Acting President General of CSO MESSAGE FROM UNFPA As the world moves towards 2030 agenda for Sustainable Development, the need for quality and reliable data has been reiterated. Any government including the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan requires data to plan for development, set targets and measure progress towards those targets. Therefore, reliable and up-to-date data collected on the ground is crucial for those purposes.

The commitment of the Central Statistics Organization of Afghanistan (CSO) towards the implementation of Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey (SDES) and the completion of the SDES report for Balkh are considered milestones towards the strengthening of evidence-based plans, program development and project monitoring in the province.

On behalf of UNFPA Afghanistan, let me congratulate the CSO, under the leadership of President General Sher Mohammad Jamizada for the successful completion of the survey in this province despite numerous challenges. With dedication and hard work, nothing is impossible.

Appreciation is also extended to our development partners for their financial support as well as to the local officials and survey respondents in Balkh province.

Let the results of this survey be used to advance the aspiration of the people in Balkh to achieve improvement and long lasting peace.

Dr. Bannet Ndyanabangi UNFPA Representative CONTENTS 1. BALKH PROFILE...... 1 2. INTRODUCTION...... 2 3. OBJECTIVES...... 2 3.1 Evidence-Based Decision Making, Policy Making, Planning and Administration...... 2 3.2 Data for Businesses and Industries ...... 2 3.3 Housing Policy and Programmes...... 3 3.4 Data on Vulnerable Populations...... 3 3.5 Humanitarian Assistance...... 3 3.6 Research...... 3 4. METHODOLOGY...... 3 4.1. Listing of Houses, Establishments and Institutions...... 4 4.2. Survey Enumeration ...... 4 5. MONITORING AND SUPERVISION...... 4 6. DATA PROCESSING...... 5 7. POPULATION CHARACTERISTICS...... 5 7.1 Population Distribution by District...... 5 7.2 Sex Composition...... 7 7.3 Age Structure...... 9 7.4 Marital Status Composition...... 13 8. LITERACY ...... 16 9. EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT ...... 20 10.MIGRATION ...... 28 11. ECONOMIC ACTIVITY...... 33 11.1 Economic Activity of 15 Years Old and Over ...... 34 11.2 Working Children Aged 5-17 Years...... 47 12. FUNCTIONAL DIFFICULTIES...... 51 13. FERTILITY ...... 55 13.1 Mean Number of Children Ever-Born...... 55 13.2 Fertility Level...... 58 14. BIRTH REGISTRATION...... 60 15. MORTALITY ...... 63 16. PARENTS’ LIVING STATUS...... 64 17. HOUSEHOLD CHARACTERISTICS...... 66 17.1 Size of Households...... 66 17.2 Main Source of Energy for Cooking...... 67 17.3 Main Source of Energy for Heating...... 68 17.4 Main Source of Energy for Lighting ...... 69 17.5 Main Source of Water for Drinking, Washing, Cooking and Other Uses ...... 70 17.6 Land Ownership...... 75 17.7 Ownership of Livestock and Poultry...... 75 17.8 Households Assets and Facilities...... 77 18. HOUSING CHARACTERISTICS...... 79 18.1 Construction Materials of Roofs ...... 79 18.2 Construction Materials of the Outer Walls...... 80 18.3 Construction Materials of the Floor...... 82 18.4 Ownership or Tenure of the Housing Unit...... 83 18.5 Type of Toilet Facility...... 84 18.6 Number of Rooms in the Dwelling Units at the Disposal of the Household and Number of Rooms for Sleeping ...... 86 19. APPENDICES...... 89 19.1 Definition of Terms...... 89 19.2 Quality of Age Data...... 90 20. REFERENCES...... 94 TABLES

Table 1 Percent Distribution of the Population by District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 2 Sex Ratio of the Population by Age Group and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 3 Median Age in Years of the Population by District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 4 Percent Distribution of Population by Age Group, Aged-Child Ratio and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 5 Age Dependency Ratios by District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 6 Singulate Mean Age at Marriage (SMAM) by Sex and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 7 Literacy Rates for Males and Females by Major Age Group and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 8 Percent Distribution of Total Population (Both Sexes) 25 Years and Above, by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 9 Percent Distribution of Male Population 25 Years and Above, by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 10 Percent Distribution of Female Population 25 Years and Above, by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 11 Net Attendance Ratio by Sex, Level of Education and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 12 Proportion of Migrants by Previous Residence and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 13 Percentage Distribution of Migrants by Duration of Stay in the Current Residence and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 14 Percentage Distribution of Population by Place of Birth and District of Residence: Balkh, December 2015 Table 15 Percentage Distribution of Migrants by Residence in Nawroz 1390 and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 16 Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Literacy Status and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 17 Percentage Distribution of Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015.

Table 18 Percentage Distribution of Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Occupation Gfroup and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 19 Percentage Distribution of Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Industry Group and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 20 Number and Percentage Distribution of Children 5-17 Years Old by Work Status, Sex, Age Group and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 21 Percentage Distribution of Ever-Married Women Aged 15-49 Years by Number of Children Ever Born and Age of Women: Balkh, December 2015

Table 22 Mean Number of CEB Among Ever-Married Women Aged 15-49 Years by Age of Women and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 23 TFR, GFR and CBR by District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 24 Proportion of Registered Births for Population Below 5 Years Old by Sex and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 25 Estimates of Infant Mortality and Under-Five Mortality Rates by Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Table 26 Percentage Distribution of Households by Size, Average Household Size and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 27 Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Source of Drinking Water and District: Balkh, December 2015 Table 28 Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Source of Water for Cooking, Washing and Other Household Uses and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 29 Proportion of Households by Ownership and Type of Livestock/Poultry and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 30 Proportion of Households by Type of Asset/Facility Present in the Households and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 31 Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Construction Materials of the Roof of the Housing Units and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 32 Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Construction Materials of the Outer Walls of the Housing Units and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 33 Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Construction Materials of the Floor of the Housing Units and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 34 Proportion of Households by Tenure Status of Housing Units and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 35 Percentage Distribution of Households by Type of Toilet Facility and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 36 Percentage Distribution of Households by Number of Dwelling Rooms at their Disposal and Household Size: Balkh, December 2015

Table 37 Percentage Distribution of Households by Number of Dwelling Rooms at their Disposal and District: Balkh, December 2015

Table 38 Percentage Distribution of Households by Number of Rooms Used for Sleeping and Household Size: Balkh, December 2015

Table A1 Indexes of Age Preference by District: Balkh, December 2015

Table A2 Age-Sex Accuracy Index by District: Balkh, December 2015 FIGURES Figure 1 Map of Afghanistan

Figure 2 Population Density by District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 3 Population by Age and Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 4 Percent Distribution of Male Population by Marital Status and Age Group: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 5 Percent Distribution of Female Population by Marital Status and Age Group: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 6 Literacy Rate by Age Group and Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 7 Percentage Distribution of Male Population Aged 7 to 24 Who Were Not Attending School at the Time of the Survey by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 8 Percentage Distribution of Female Population Aged 7 to 24 Who Were Not Attending School at the Time of the Survey by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 9 Proportion of Migrants by Sex and District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 10 Percentage Distribution of Migrants in the Province by District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 11 Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older by Work Status and Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 12 Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked in the 12 Months Prior to Survey by Sex and District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 13 Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older by Work Status and District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 14 Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older by Work Status and Age Group: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 15 Percentage Distribution of Population 15 Years or Older Who Did Not Work by Whether Available for Work or Not and District: Balkh, December 2015 Figure 16 Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older Who Were Not Working But Seeking or Available for Work by Sex and District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 17 Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older by Work Status, Highest Class Completed and Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 18 Percentage Distribution of the Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Occupation Group and Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 19 Percentage Distribution of the Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Industry Group and Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 20 Percentage Distribution of the Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Status of Employment and Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 21 Percentage Distribution of the Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Status of Employment and District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 22 Percentage Distribution of Working Children 5-17 Years Old by District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 23 Percentage of Children 5-17 Years Old Who Worked by Sex and School Attendance: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 24 Percentage of Children 5-17 Years Old Who Worked by Age Group and School Attendance: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 25 Percentage Distribution of Working Children 5-17 Years Old by Sex and Occupation Group: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 26 Percentage of the Population 5 Years or Older with Functional Difficulty by Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 27 Percentage of the Population 5 Years or Older with Functional Difficulty by District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 28 Percentage of the Population 5 Years or Older with Functional Difficulty by Sex and Age Group: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 29 Percentage of the Population 5 Years and Older with Functional Difficulty by Type of Difficulty and Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 30 Percentage of the Population 5 Years or Older with Functional Difficulty by Marital Status and Sex: Balkh, December 2015 Figure 31 Age-Specific Fertility Rates of Balkh Province, Marmul and Shortepa Districts: December 2015

Figure 32 Percentage of Registered Births for Population Below 5 Years Old by Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 33 Percentage of Registered Births for Population Below 5 Years Old by District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 34 Percentage of Orphaned Children Below 5 Years Old: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 35 Percentage of Orphaned Children Below 5 Years Old by District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 36 Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Source of Energy for Cooking and District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 37 Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Source of Energy for Heating and District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 38 Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Source of Energy for Lighting and District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 39 Proportion of Households with Access to Improved Drinking Water Source by District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 40 Proportion of Households with Agricultural Land Owned by District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure 41 Proportion of Households with an Improved Sanitation Facility by District: Balkh, December 2015

Figure Population in Single Year of Age by Sex: Balkh, December 2015 A1 TEXT BOXES

Text Box 1 Median Age

Text Box 2 Total Dependency Ratio

Text Box 3 Literacy Rate for 10 Years and Older

Text Box 4 Literacy Rate for 15–24 Age Group

Text Box 5 Highest Class Completed

Text Box 6 Net Primary Attendance Rate

Text Box 7 Proportion of Population 5 Years Old and Over with Functional Difficulty

Text Box 8 Total Fertility Rate

Text Box 9 Registered Births

Text Box 10 Early Childhood Mortality Rates

Text Box 11 Parents’ Living Status

Text Box 12 Average Household Size

Text Box 13 Proportion of Households Using Improved Drinking Water Sources

Text Box 14 Proportion of Households Using Improved Sanitation Facility

Text Box A1 Age Preference Indexes

Text Box A2 UN Age-Sex Accuracy Index ACRONYMS

ASFR Age-Specific Fertility Rate

CBR Crude Birth Rate

CEB Children Ever Born

CSO Central Statistics Organization

DPC Data Processing Centre

DSO District Statistics Officer

GFR General Fertility Rate

GPS Global Positioning System

IMR Infant Mortality Rate

ISIC International Standard Industrial Classification

ISOC International Standard Occupational Classification

LPG Liquid Petroleum Gas

MDG Millennium Development Goal

SMAM Singulate Mean Age at Marriage

SDES Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

TDR Total Dependency Ratio

TFR Total Fertility Rate

UNFPA United Nations Population Fund

U5MR Under 5 Mortality Rate Balkh

1. BALKH PROFILE Balkh Province is located in the Northern Region in the country and is bordered by Uzbekistan in the North, Tajikistan in the North-East, Kunduz in the East, Samangan in the South-East, Sar-e-Pul in the South-West and Jawzjan in the West (Figure 1). The province lies at coordinates 36.71N 67.11E (CSO, 2015) and at a distance of 321 kilometers from country’s capital, Kabul. Mazar-e-Sharif, the provincial capital, is an attractive historical site where the famous tomb of Hazrat Ali or “Blue Mosque” is located and attracts tourists and pilgrims.

Balkh is situated at an elevation of 334 meters above sea level and covers a land 2 area of 16,186 km , representing 2.48 percent of the total Afghan territory (CSO, 2015). Aside from Mazar-e-Sharif, the remaining 14 districts are Nahr-e-Shahi, Dehdadi, Char Kent, Marmul, Balkh, Sholgara, Chimtal, Dawlat Abad, Khulm, Char Bolak, Shortepa, Kaldar, Kishendeh and Zari.

The warm climate and moderate winter coolness are conducive to double cropping when it comes to agriculture. Cereals and potato are the most common crops in the province.It also produces industrial crops like cotton, sesame and tobacco (CSO, 2008). Figure 1. Map of Afghanistan

1 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

2. INTRODUCTION The Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey (SDES) is a continuing project of the Central Statistics Organization (CSO) of Afghanistan with technical assistance from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Balkh Province is the 9th province in which SDES has been rolled out.

SDES provides reliable socio-demographic and economic data at the national, provincial and district level that are crucial for evidence-based decision making, programme development, and project monitoring. SDES gathered information on the composition of population characteristics, literacy, educational attainment, migration, employment, functional difficulty, fertility, mortality, birth registration, and living status of parents, disaggregated by sex and district. Information on the household and housing characteristics is also included.

Just like in other provinces where SDES has been conducted, different ways of monitoring the survey operations (from survey planning to data analysis) were strictly implemented to ensure that high quality data are being collected.

3. OBJECTIVES 3.1 Evidence-Based Decision Making, Policy Making, Planning and Administration From 2002, Afghanistan began receiving massive amounts of multi-sector support for development projects. Most projects were designed and implemented despite lack of reliable population and demographic data, especially relating to villages and districts. This lack of data has hampered effective policy formulation and strategic development planning at the local level. Absence of precise baseline data also makes it difficult to measure progress or to target priority populations and ensure efficient resource allocation. The SDES was designed to fill this data gap and the social and economic dimensions of Afghan households it collects should lead to better targeted policies and service delivery.

3.2 Data for Businesses and Industries The business sector needs information on the environment, product availability and demand, consumer capability and demand, labour dimensions and government policies. The SDES covers important questions on the current economic activities and capacities of the population.

2 Balkh

3.3 Housing Policy and Programmes The SDES provides data on current housing status, demand and capacity to acquire property, and the structural make-up of houses. This can guide policymakers in the design of housing programmes.

3.4 Data on Vulnerable Populations The SDES collects data on categories of the population with varying types of vulnerability. Among the special groups are people with disabilities, youth and women. Their demographic and socio-economic attributes require special treatment in policy and programming, and must be factored into the country’s development processes at all levels.

3.5 Humanitarian Assistance The SDES includes a mapping and listing of all houses, business establishments and institutions at the district and village levels as well as the location of community infrastructure, such as health facilities, schools, mosques, markets and roads, which are essential for emergency preparedness plans to mitigate the effects of disaster. Population groups are categorized by sex, age, education, literacy, employment status and other important variables which can help shape humanitarian assistance, if needed.

3.6 Research The SDES provides invaluable data for further analysis, comparison with other survey results and for further research. The data will be extremely useful for government and non-government institutions. For instance, data on out-of-school youth can generate new policies to address their situation.

4. METHODOLOGY The survey comprised two related activities: listing and mapping of houses, establishments and institutions (conducted before the household survey), and the household survey itself.

3 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

4.1. Listing of Houses, Establishments and Institutions An extensive listing and mapping process covered all houses, businesses and institutions in every village and urban area in Balkh Province. This included the preparation of sketch maps on which the physical location of each structure was marked during canvassing and the locations of important public services, establishments and institutions such as schools, hospitals, banks, etc., were further pinpointed through the use of Global Positioning System (GPS) devices. Information related to infrastructure, such as available means of transportation to and from each village, the presence of electricity, water sources, potential relocation sites, etc., were collected.

The surveyors used the outputs from the mapping to guide them in conducting the survey and to ensure complete coverage of their assigned areas. In total, 15 districts and around 1,440 enumeration areas were canvassed.

4.2. Survey Enumeration Unlike previous CSO surveys, which were designed to provide data at the provincial level, SDES focuses on district and even smaller units, including urban subdivisions, major villages and clusters of small villages. This will prove valuable for local development planning and for monitoring public service delivery.

Half of the listed households (i.e., every other household) were taken as sample households and respondents from each sample household were asked detailed questions.

5. MONITORING AND SUPERVISION The listing and mapping activity was carried out by 233 hired cartographers, 233 hired assistant cartographers, along with 51 Nahia/District Statistics Officers (N/ DSOs) and assistants and six CSO staff as supervisors. The field enumeration was conducted by 1,269 surveyors, 420 controllers, 89 district editors, 72 district coders, and 26 Receipt and Control Clerks (R&CC) under the supervision of the N/DSOs and their assistants, and CSO staff supervisors. Monitoring was conducted by CSO and UNFPA technical staff who visited the district centres during the two-week training of the DSOs and assistants, controllers and surveyors. They provided clarifications on concepts and procedures to follow in executing the survey and responded to logistical, administrative, financial, and human resource problems as needed.

4 Balkh

CSO and UNFPA technical staff were also responsible for checking the questionnaires, as well as spot-checking, re-interviewing and recording observations during the household interviews in all 15 districts. Errors were thus corrected at an early stage of enumeration.

A third party monitoring company was contracted to check the coverage of data collection. A total of 30 District Monitors (DMs) and Deputy District Monitors (DDMs), and additional 447 EA/village monitors were utilized. The findings of the monitoring group were immediately relayed to CSO supervisors for necessary action.

6. DATA PROCESSING The first and second data entry were done in Balkh. A Data Processing Centre (DPC) was established in Mazar-E-Sharif and 140 data processors were recruited. They were given strict screening and extensive technical training. Computers, generator, furniture, heaters, an internet connection and other materials and utilities were provided.

Further data cleaning was done in Kabul at the CSO DPC, with 102 verifiers and one CSO supervisor to oversee the data processing stage.

7. POPULATION CHARACTERISTICS 7.1 Population Distribution by District Mazar-E-Sharif, the Provincial Center, had the largest share of the population in Balkh, comprising 31.7 percent of the total population in the province followed by Nahr-E-Shahi at 12.7 percent. Marmul had the lowest proportion of the total population with 0.7 percent followed by Char Kent with 1.7 percent (Table 1).

5 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Table 1. Percent Distribution of the Population by District: Balkh, December 2015

Province/District Percent Balkh 100.0 Mazar-E-Sharif 31.7 Nahr-E-Shahi 12.7 Dehdadi 8.4 Char Kent 1.7 Marmul 0.7 Balkh 8.8 Sholgara 6.2 Chimtal 4.7 Dawlat Abad 6.3 Khulm 3.0 Char Bolak 5.5 Shortepa 1.8 Kaldar 1.8 Kishendeh 3.7 Zari 3.1

Figure 2 shows the population density, which is the ratio of the population to the land area. Mazar-E-Sharif had the most number of people who occupy the same size of 2 land (7,906 persons per km of land area), while Shortepa and Khulm had the fewest 2 (16 persons per km each). Figure 2. Population Density by District: Balkh, December 2015

6 Balkh

7.2 Sex Composition There was a slightly higher male population in Balkh Province (50.5 percent) than female population. The sex ratio was 102 males for every 100 females, which is lower than Afghanistan’s overall sex ratio (105 males for every 100 females) (CSO, 2014).

Populations with marked deviations in sex ratio from 100, i.e., below 95 or above 110, can be explained by sex-selective migration, female infanticide, sex-selective abortion, sex-selective under-reporting, economic activities, or a special feature of the area such as the presence of a large military installation, an institution confining a particular sex, or war mortality.

Table 2 shows that Shortepa had the highest sex ratio at 106 males for every 100 females, followed by Marmul at 105 males per 100 females. The sex ratio in other districts ranged from 94 in Zari to 104 in Mazar-E-Sharif and Dehdadi.

The sex ratio varies by age group. In developed countries, the sex ratio of a population is high at very young ages and decreases with increasing age. In countries with very high maternal mortality rate and low status of women, however, the sex ratio decreases up to child bearing age and increases with age. Generally, young populations or populations with high fertility tend to have a higher sex ratio than old populations or populations with low fertility.

7

Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey Zari

88 80 89 90 90 87 77 75 99 97 94 153 110 135 107 Kishendeh

91 91 94 93 89 85 96 99 162 123 148 127 103 109 100 Kaldar

93 87 99 96 98 94 149 120 116 118 108 102 110 105 102 Shortepa

82 94 96

88 97 82 109 137 131 124 105 121 110 137 106 Char Bolak Char

95 98 93 96 93 96 99 93 99 137 110 100 102 107 101 Khulm

88

84 87 95 124 111 102 101 120 108 103 101 106 100 102 Dawlat Abad Dawlat

96 86

94 89 94 87 96 156 121 109 103 106 101 102 100 Chimtal

91 93

92 95 99 91 143 138 110 107 108 107 101 112 101 Sholgara

92 92 93 82 94 93 94 95 99 151 123 106 103 106 101 Balkh

95 92

92 97 146 109 104 100 101 107 100 108 102 104 103 Marmul

93

83 77 74 98 132 110 144 102 115 102 112 111 109 105 Char Kent Char

86 89 89 153 131 114 100 103 100 105 112 104 100 102 102 Dehdadi

93

90 98 97 153 137 121 108 101 106 102 107 102 104 104 Nahr-E-Shahi

91 95 162 126 109 106 102 106 100 101 103 106 101 103 103 Mazar-E-Sharfi

97

93 98 99 147 126 112 103 104 100 101 108 105 104 104 Balkh 96 99 93 98 96 99 148 123 110 102 101 108 103 101 102 Age Age Total Group/ Group/ District Province/ 65+ 60 - 64 55 - 59 50 - 54 45 - 49 40 - 44 35 - 39 30 - 34 25 - 29 20 - 24 15 - 19 10-14 5-9 0-4 Table 2. Sex Ratio of the Population by Age Group and District: Balkh, December 2015 December Balkh, Group and District: by Age Ratio of the Population Table 2. Sex

8 Balkh

In general, the sex ratio at birth for children ever born (CEB) is around 105 males per 100 females, with a normal range of 102-107. A sex ratio higher than 107 suggests that female babies are being omitted, while sex ratios below 102 may indicate that male babies are being omitted. Sex-selective abortion may also result in sex ratios at birth which are outside the normal range.

Extremely high sex ratios were noticeable for the 60 years and above in all districts which ranged from 109 in Balkh to 162 in Nahr-E-Shahi and Kishendeh (Table 2). The high sex ratios for older ages may be due to high maternal mortality.

7.3 Age Structure Balkh has a very young population with about 43.7 percent of its population below 15 years old at the time of the survey (Figure 3). The 0-4 year age group constituted the largest segment of the provincial population at 15.4 percent, followed by the 5-9 year age group at 14.4 percent. The 10-14 year age group comprised the third largest segment of the population at 13.9 percent.

Age data for household members are normally reported by the respondent, either by the mother or the father. Age misreporting arises when the respondent does not know either the exact age or the date of birth of each household member. In cases like this, surveyors or respondents tend to report certain ages, which result in age heaping, age preference or digit preference.A detailed discussion on the quality of age data for Balkh Province is provided in Appendix A1. Figure 3. Population by Age Group and Sex: Balkh, December 2015 85+ 80 - 84 75 - 79 70 - 74 65 - 69 60 - 64 Male Female 55 - 59 50 - 54 45 - 49 40 - 44 35 - 39 30 - 34 25 - 29 20 - 24 15 - 19 10-14 5-9 0-4

10.08.0 6.04.0 2.00.0 2.04.0 6.08.0 10.0

9 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

The median age of the population in Balkh is 17.1 years, TEXT BOX 1: MEDIAN AGE which is the same as the estimated median age of 17.1 years in Parwan and Kapisa but higher than in Takhar Balkh (2015) 17.1 (16.3 years), Ghor (16.3 years), Daykundi (15.2 years) Takhar (2015) 16.3 and Bamiyan (16.6 years) (Text Box 1). At the district Samangan (2015) 17.5 level, the median age ranged from 15.1 years (Marmul) Parwan (2014) 17.1 Kapisa (2014) 17.1 to 21.0 years (Shortepa). Kabul (2013) 17.7 Ghor (2012) 16.3 On average, the male population of Balkh Province had Daykundi (2012) 15.2 a median age of 17.0 years while the female population Bamiyan (2011) 16.6 had a slightly higher median age of 17.1 years. Females Source: SDES were generally older than males in 9 of 15 districts in the province (Table 3). Table 3. Median Age in Years of Population by District: Balkh, December 2015

Province/District Both Sexes Male Female Balkh 17.1 17.0 17.1 Mazar-E-Sharif 17.8 17.7 17.9 Nahr-E-Shahi 16.3 16.3 16.3 Dehdadi 16.5 16.5 16.6 Char Kent 18.3 18.6 18.0 Marmul 15.1 14.7 15.6 Balkh 16.1 16.0 16.3 Sholgara 16.8 16.7 16.9 Chimtal 17.1 17.3 17.0 Dawlat Abad 16.8 16.5 17.0 Khulm 18.1 18.2 18.1 Char Bolak 15.7 15.6 15.7 Shortepa 21.0 21.1 20.7 Kaldar 17.1 17.1 17.2 Kishendeh 17.1 17.1 17.0 Zari 16.0 15.3 16.5

10 Balkh

The proportion of the population under age 15 also provides an indication as to whether a population is young or old; those with 35.0 percent or more below age 15 are regarded as young. As Table 4 shows, the proportion of children under 15 years ranged from 35.8 percent in Shortepa to 48.4 percent in Marmul. This indicates that all districts of Balkh have a very young population. Table 4. Percent Distribution of Population by Age Group, Aged-Child Ratio and District: Balkh, December 2015

Age Group Aged-Child Province/District Total 65 and 0-14 15-64 Ratio above Balkh 100.0 43.7 53.3 3.0 6.8 Mazar-E-Sharif 100.0 41.5 55.4 3.1 7.5 Nahr-E-Shahi 100.0 45.8 51.6 2.6 5.7 Dehdadi 100.0 45.0 52.2 2.8 6.2 Char Kent 100.0 40.7 55.8 3.4 8.4 Marmul 100.0 48.4 48.1 3.5 7.2 Balkh 100.0 45.9 51.5 2.6 5.7 Sholgara 100.0 44.2 52.5 3.2 7.3 Chimtal 100.0 43.7 53.9 2.4 5.4 Dawlat Abad 100.0 44.5 52.1 3.3 7.4 Khulm 100.0 40.7 54.5 4.8 11.8 Char Bolak 100.0 47.3 50.0 2.7 5.8 Shortepa 100.0 35.8 60.9 3.3 9.1 Kaldar 100.0 44.0 53.7 2.3 5.2 Kishendeh 100.0 44.2 52.7 3.2 7.2 Zari 100.0 46.7 50.0 3.3 7.0

Table 4 also shows the proportions of persons aged 15-64 years and 65 years and over, by district. The 15-64 year age group is commonly considered as the working age group especially in more developed countries. For the whole Balkh Province, the working age group accounted for 53.3 percent of the total population. At the district level, this proportion ranged from 48.1 percent in Marmul to 60.9 percent in Shortepa.

11 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

When older persons (65 years old and over) comprise less than 10 percent of the total population, it is also considered a young population. The proportion of older or aged persons for Balkh Province in 2015 was 3.0 percent, with district level proportions varying from 2.3 percent in Kaldar to 4.8 percent in Khulm.

The aged-child ratio or the ratio of persons aged 65 years and over to the number of children under 15 years is also shown in Table 4. For Balkh Province, the aged-child ratio was 6.8, which means that in 2015, there were about seven persons aged 65 years and over for every 100 children under 15 years of age. At the district level, the ratio ranged from 5.2 percent in Kaldar to 11.8 percent in Khulm.

Another indicator of population composition is the age dependency ratio. This ratio shows changes in the population age structure, which may have implications for social and economic development. Assuming that the population aged 15-64 years represents the working age group, this ratio is commonly calculated as the sum of the number of children and the number of aged or older persons divided by the number of working-age population. It is observed that young populations typically have a total dependency ratio exceeding 100. Table 5. Age Dependency Ratios by District: Balkh, December 2015

Total Dependency Child Dependency Old-Age Province/District Ratio Ratio Dependency Ratio Balkh 87.6 82.0 5.6 Mazar-E-Sharif 80.5 74.9 5.6 Nahr-E-Shahi 93.7 88.7 5.1 Dehdadi 91.4 86.1 5.3 Char Kent 79.1 72.9 6.1 Marmul 107.7 100.5 7.2 Balkh 94.2 89.1 5.1 Sholgara 90.3 84.1 6.2 Chimtal 85.5 81.1 4.4 Dawlat Abad 91.8 85.4 6.4 Khulm 83.6 74.8 8.8 Char Bolak 100.1 94.6 5.5 Shortepa 64.1 58.8 5.4 Kaldar 86.3 82.0 4.2 Kishendeh 89.9 83.9 6.0 Zari 100.1 93.5 6.6 12 Balkh

Table 5 shows the age dependency ratios for Balkh TEXT BOX 2: TOTAL Province and districts. The total dependency ratio was DEPENDENCY RATIO 87.6, broken down into the child dependency ratio of Balkh (2015)* 87.6 82.0 and the old-age dependency ratio of 5.6. This Takhar (2015)* 99.7 means that for every 100 persons in working ages (15 Samangan (2015)* 89.1 to 64 years) there were about 88 dependents, involving 82 children and six older persons. The total dependency Parwan (2014)* 90.8 ratio in Balkh Province is lower than the national estimate Kapisa (2014)* 91.1 of 100 (Text Box 2). Kabul (2013)* 83.5 Ghor (2012)* 96.0 Among the districts, Marmul had the highest total Daykundi (2012)* 108.9 dependency ratio at 107.7 and child dependency ratio Bamiyan (2011)* 96.3 at 100.5. Khulm had the highest old-age dependency Afghanistan** 100.0 ratio at 8.8 while Shortepa had both the lowest total Sources: *SDES **ALCS 2013-2014 dependency ratio at 64.1 and child dependency ratio at 58.8. Kaldar had the lowest old-age dependency ratio at 4.2

7.4 Marital Status Composition In the absence of migration and polygamy, the total number of married men in a population equals the total number of married women. These numbers typically vary by age group as women customarily marry men older than they are. This custom of women marrying older men would result in the differences between the marital status distributions of men and women at young ages. This appeared to be the case in Balkh Province as shown in Figures 4 and 5. Among males aged 20-24 years, those who were married at the time of survey comprised 28.8 percent, while among females in this age group; the corresponding percentage was 59.3 percent. For age group 25-29 years, almost nine in ten women were married, compared to seven in ten men.

Figures 4 and 5 also show that at age group 60 years and above, 54.1 percent of women were widowed and 45 percent were married, while for men the figures were 8.4 percent and 90.7 percent, respectively. This may be due to older men remarrying younger women.

13 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Figure 4. Percentage Distribution of Male Population by Marital Status and Age Group: Balkh, December 2015 100% 2.5 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.5 0.9 1.4 2.2 8.4 90% 28.8 80% 70% 72.1 60% 91.7 50% 100.0 97.5 96.6 98.0 98.1 97.6 97.2 90.7 40% 71.0 30% 20% 27.6 10% 7.8 0% 3.0 1.4 0.9 0.8 0.5 0.7 Under 15 15 - 19 20 24- 25 - 29 30 - 34 35 - 39 40 - 44 45 - 49 50 - 5 4 55 - 59 60 and over

Never Married Currently Married Widowed Divorced/Separated

Figure 5. Percentage Distribution of Female Population by Marital Status and Age Group: Balkh, December 2015 100% 0.1 0.3 0.6 1.6 3.0 7.4 12.3 90% 14.0 21.4 26.1 80%

70% 59.3 54.1 60% 87.7 50% 100.0 94.4 95.4 91.4 85.9 86.8 40% 77.6 73.2 30% 45.0 20% 40.3

10% 11.5 0% 3.8 1.5 0.9 0.6 0.7 0.4 0.5 Under 15 15 - 19 20 - 24 25 - 29 30 - 34 35 - 39 40 - 44 45 - 49 50 - 54 55 - 59 60 and over

Never Married Currently Married Widowed Divorced/Separated

For lack of a direct question on the age at first marriage of men and women in the SDES, the Singulate Mean Age at Marriage (SMAM) was estimated as an indirect measure for mean age at first marriage. SMAM is based on the marital status information for males and females in ages 15-54 at the time of the survey.

14 Balkh

Table 6 shows that among males in Balkh Province who marry before age 50, they have spent 25.2 years, on average, in single state before crossing to the formal married state. The SMAM of their women counterparts is 22.0 years. This suggests that males have remained single by about three years longer, on average, than females. This SMAM gender pattern is observed in all districts of Balkh.

Data from Table 6 also shows that women in Zari tend to transition to the married state at age 19.8 years (lowest SMAM). In contrast, males in Khulm and Mazar-E-Sharif had the highest average length of single life (26.7 and 26.1 years, respectively). Table 6. Singulate Mean Age at Marriage (SMAM) by Sex and District: Balkh, December 2015

Singulate Mean Age at Marriage Province/District Male Female Balkh 25.2 22.0 Mazar-E-Sharif 26.1 22.9 Nahr-E-Shahi 24.9 21.6 Dehdadi 25.3 22.1 Char Kent 24.8 21.6 Marmul 23.4 20.7 Balkh 24.8 21.8 Sholgara 25.2 21.9 Chimtal 23.3 20.7 Dawlat Abad 25.6 22.6 Khulm 26.7 23.1 Char Bolak 24.3 21.7 Shortepa 24.3 20.8 Kaldar 24.9 21.3 Kishendeh 24.5 20.2 Zari 23.2 19.8

15 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

8. LITERACY The United Nations defines literacy as the ability to read and write, with understanding, a short simple statement. The UN recommends that data on literacy be collected in censuses for persons aged 10 years and older because the ability to read and write requires some years of schooling or time to develop. In censuses, the answers to the cited question on literacy are accepted at face value.

In the 2015 Balkh SDES, the question on whether a member of the sample household can read and write, with understanding, a simple message in any language was asked for household members aged five years and above. Literacy rates for the population aged 10 years and above, 15 years and above and for the 15-24 age groups are given in Table 7.

16

Balkh

Male Ratio Male Female/

75.9 89.7 79.1 80.0 51.3 54.1 63.2 69.5 54.4 70.6 77.7 39.4 11.3 62.1 38.4 43.4 Female

4.4 53.0 78.4 56.5 60.2 24.9 38.8 39.1 38.4 23.9 46.0 54.2 19.0 39.2 16.0 19.7 Male

15-24 Years 15-24 Years

69.8 87.4 71.4 75.3 48.5 71.7 61.9 55.3 44.0 65.1 69.7 48.3 39.5 63.2 41.7 45.3

Sexes Both Both

61.3 82.9 64.0 67.8 36.6 55.8 50.4 46.6 33.8 55.2 61.9 33.5 23.2 51.0 28.0 30.8

Male Ratio Male Female/

7.7 59.7 71.5 59.4 63.9 36.5 35.8 48.8 47.3 40.7 52.5 62.0 28.5 50.4 25.2 30.4 Female

9.3 1.8 7.2 9.3 31.3 51.4 31.6 35.9 12.4 19.0 20.7 18.4 13.3 23.0 29.2 22.8 Male 52.4 71.8 53.1 56.2 34.1 53.1 42.4 39.0 32.6 43.9 47.1 32.7 22.8 45.3 28.6 30.6

15 Years and Above Sexes Both Both

41.9 61.7 42.5 46.2 23.4 36.1 31.6 28.6 23.1 33.3 38.2 20.9 12.7 34.2 17.8 19.3

Male Ratio Male Female/

66.3 77.3 67.7 70.9 44.8 47.9 56.1 54.9 45.9 60.9 69.1 34.3 13.5 53.5 34.9 40.9 Female

3.4 37.3 58.4 39.5 43.0 17.3 24.8 26.7 22.9 16.5 28.8 36.0 12.7 25.2 10.3 13.5 Male 56.2 75.5 58.3 60.7 38.6 51.8 47.6 41.6 36.0 47.3 52.2 37.0 25.3 47.0 29.6 32.9

10 Years and Above sexes Both Both 46.9 67.1 49.1 52.0 28.1 38.5 37.3 32.2 26.5 38.0 44.2 24.9 15.0 36.3 20.0 22.8 Mazar-E-Sharif Nahr-e-Shahi Dehdadi Char Kent Marmul Balkh Sholgara Chimtal Dawlat Abad Khulm Char Bolak Shortepa Kaldar Kishendeh Zari Province/District Balkh Table 7. Literacy Rates for Males and Females by Major Age Group and District: Balkh, December 2015 December Balkh, for Males and Females by Major Age Group District: Rates Table 7. Literacy

17 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

The literacy rate for 10 years and older in Balkh Province TEXT BOX 3: LITERACY was 46.9 percent. The literacy rate for males (56.2 RATE FOR 10 YEARS percent) was higher compared to females (37.3 percent). AND OLDER At the district level, the literacy rate for the males aged 10 Balkh (2015) 46.9 years and above ranged from 25.3 percent in Shortepa to Takhar (2015) 33.2 75.5 percent in Mazar-E-Sharif. Likewise, the literacy rate Samangan (2015) 32.6 for females aged 10 years and above was the highest in Kapisa (2014) 52.2 Mazar-E-Sharif at 58.4 percent and the lowest in Shortepa Parwan (2014) 44.9 at 3.4 percent. When compared to other provinces where Kabul (2013) 59.6 the SDES has been carried out, the literacy rate of 46.9 Ghor (2012) 26.0 percent for 10 years old and over in Balkh Province was Daikundi (2012) 43.6 the third to the highest after Kabul and Kapisa (Text Box 3). Bamiyan (2011) 38.1

Source: SDES There were significant gaps between male and female literacy rates as reflected in the female/male ratio in Table 7. For the province, there were 66 literate females for every 100 literate males. Shortepa had the lowest female/male ratio with 14 literate females for every 100 literate males 10 years old and over. Mazar-E-Sharif, which had both the highest male and female literacy rates, had also the highest female/male literacy ratio at 77 literate women for every 100 literate men.

The literacy rates shown in Table 7 for the population aged 10 years and above were higher than those aged 15 years and over. This suggests an improvement in literacy, especially in the 10-14 age group. The data also demonstrates a narrowing of the gap between male and female literacy rates: the female/male ratio for those aged 15 years and above was 59.7 percent, lower than for those aged 10 years and over (66.3 percent).

The literacy rate for the population aged 15 years and above was 41.9 percent for both sexes (52.4 percent for males and 31.3 percent for females). These percentages are higher than Afghanistan’s overall literacy rate of 34.3 percent (49.1 percent for males and 19 percent for females) (CSO 2014).

Table 7 also shows the literacy rates for men and women in the 15-24 age group (defined as the youth population), and the ratio of women’s and men’s literacy rates in this age group by district. This is one of the indicators of Goal 3 of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), to promote gender equality and empower women and Goal 4 of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), to eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of education. In this age group, the female/male youth literacy ratio was 75.9 percent and three in five were considered literate. About seven in ten male youths and one in two female youths were considered literate.

18 Balkh

At the district level, the ratio ranged from 11 TEXT BOX 4: LITERACY RATE (Shortepa) to 90 (Mazar-E-Sharif) literate female FOR 15-24 AGE GROUP youths for every 100 literate male youths. Likewise, Male Female Mazar-E-Sharif had both the highest male and Balkh (2015)* 69.8 53.0 female youth literacy rates at 87.4 percent and Takhar (2015)* 56.1 37.4 78.4 percent, respectively. Dehdadi had the second Samangan (2015)* 55.4 31.6 highest male and female youth literacy rates at 75.3 Kapisa (2014)* 86.3 48.3 percent and 60.2 percent, respectively. Shortepa Parwan (2014)* 78.8 35.7 had both the lowest male and female youth literacy Kabul (2013)* 83.3 68.4 rates (39.5 percent and 4.4 percent, respectively). Ghor (2012)* 42.0 15.8 Daikundi (2012)* 67.2 46.5 Text Box 4 shows the comparison of the youth Bamiyan (2011)* 61.6 34.1 literacy rate by sex in provinces where SDES was Afghanistan** 66.3 36.7 completed. The male youth literacy rate in Balkh Sources: *SDES Province was higher compared in Takhar, Samangan, **ALCS 2013-2014 Ghor, Daykundi, Bamiyan and the national estimate. While the female youth literacy rate in the province was the second to the highest after Kabul. Figure 6. Literacy Rate by Age Group and Sex: Balkh, December 2015 100.0

90.0

80.0 71.1 72.8 70.0 66.2 62.2 Male Female 59.0 60.0 52.2 50.0 45.7 42.4 41.6 41.1 40.9 39.4 38.4 40.0 30.2 27.5 30.0 25.1 26.9 18.5 20.0 16.1 14.8 15.1 11.1 10.0 10.0 5.2

0.0

Recent improvements in Balkh’s literacy may be inferred from Figure 6. The literacy rates for the 10-14 years, 15-19 years and 20-24 year age groups for both males and females were significantly higher than the other age groups. The literacy rates for males, and more evidently among females, in the 20-24 age group, were lower than those for younger age groups but noticeably higher than those for older age

19 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

groups. These older groups also had similar rates, suggesting that there was an improvement in literacy but at a slower rate until recent years. The relatively higher rate of literacy among the school-age than the older population may be attributed to recent improvements in the educational system of Balkh Province that partly led to higher school participation.

Moreover, the gender gap in literacy rate has declined. The 25 percentage point difference in literacy rate for 60 years and over population has declined to just 8.9 percentage point difference among males and females in the age group 10-14 years.

9. EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT Educational attainment is defined as the highest class completed by an individual, and is assessed by examining data on the highest grade, class or level of education completed by those aged 25 years and above when an individual would normally have completed schooling or participation in college prior to graduation, and varying levels of degree attainment such as Associate’s, Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctoral degrees. Tables 8-10 present the highest level of education completed by the population aged 25 years and above in Balkh and its districts.

20 Balkh

Table 8. Percent Distribution of Total Population (Both Sexes) 25 Years and Above, by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015

Vocational No Classes Classes Classes Province/District and Higher Schooling 1-6 7-9 10-12 Education Balkh 73.4 8.2 4.7 8.0 5.7 Mazar-E-Sharif 55.2 11.3 7.5 14.5 11.5 Nahr-e-Shahi 74.7 10.1 5.4 6.5 3.3 Dehdadi 69.7 9.1 5.4 9.3 6.5 Char Kent 92.4 3.7 1.2 2.1 0.6 Marmul 76.5 13.2 3.0 4.6 2.6 Balkh 82.8 6.4 3.1 4.9 2.8 Sholgara 86.5 4.8 2.4 3.5 2.8 Chimtal 89.1 4.5 1.8 3.2 1.4 Dawlat Abad 81.3 8.6 3.3 4.1 2.7 Khulm 78.9 8.6 4.0 5.5 3.0 Char Bolak 89.1 4.4 2.2 2.6 1.8 Shortepa 95.0 0.7 1.1 2.5 0.8 Kaldar 77.0 5.4 3.8 8.2 5.7 Kishendeh 93.0 2.5 1.5 2.2 0.8 Zari 92.6 2.7 1.3 2.6 0.8

Table 8 shows that 73.4 percent of the residents in Balkh Province aged 25 years and above did not attend school or had attended but did not complete the first class at the time of the survey. The corresponding percentages were 62.6 percent for males (Table 9) and 84.6 percent for females (Table 10).

Generally, men in Shortepa, Kishendeh, Zari and Char Kent were less educated compared to their counterparts in other districts. About 90.6 percent, 87.4 percent, 86.7 percent, and 86.6 percent, respectively of their population did not attend school or had been to school but did not complete class 1 (Table 9).

21 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Table 9. Percent Distribution of Male Population 25 Years and Above, by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015

Vocational Province/ No Classes Classes 1-6 Classes 7-9 and Higher District Schooling 10-12 Education Balkh 62.6 11.4 6.5 11.7 7.9 Mazar-E-Sharif 41.9 14.0 9.4 19.7 15.0 Nahr-e-Shahi 63.8 14.2 7.7 9.7 4.7 Dehdadi 57.7 12.2 7.2 13.9 9.0 Char Kent 86.6 6.6 2.1 3.5 1.1 Marmul 55.5 24.7 5.8 8.6 5.4 Balkh 72.8 10.0 5.0 7.8 4.4 Sholgara 77.1 8.3 4.1 5.9 4.6 Chimtal 82.8 6.7 3.0 5.2 2.3 Dawlat Abad 69.6 13.4 5.4 6.9 4.7 Khulm 67.7 13.4 6.1 8.4 4.4 Char Bolak 80.4 7.9 3.8 4.7 3.2 Shortepa 90.6 1.2 2.0 4.7 1.5 Kaldar 67.1 7.8 5.2 12.2 7.7 Kishendeh 87.4 4.3 2.7 4.0 1.6 Zari 86.7 4.8 2.3 4.8 1.4

Table 9 also shows that among males, those who attended classes 10-12 or received vocational or higher education comprised a very small percentage (19.6 percent). In Mazar-E-Sharif, 34.7 percent of males aged 25 years or older had attained or completed classes 10-12, vocational or higher education. This was followed by Dehdadi (22.9 percent), Kaldar (19.9 percent), Nahr-e-Shahi (14.4 percent), and Marmul (14 percent), while the remaining districts had less than 12 percent completing at least class 10 education.

Women in Balkh were less likely to go to school than men as four in five women aged 25 years or older had not completed any class (Table 10). Nearly all women aged 25 years or older in most districts except in Mazar-E-Shahi, Dehdadi, Nahr-E-Shahi and Kaldar, had not attended school ranging from 90.4 percent in Khulm to 99.6 percent in Shortepa.

22 Balkh

Table 10. Percent Distribution of Female Population 25 Years and Above, by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015

Vocational No Classes Classes Classes Province/District and Higher Schooling 1-6 7-9 10-12 Education Balkh 84.6 4.8 2.8 4.3 3.5 Mazar-E-Sharif 69.1 8.5 5.4 9.1 7.9 Nahr-e-Shahi 86.2 5.8 2.9 3.2 1.8 Dehdadi 82.3 5.8 3.5 4.4 3.9 Char Kent 98.5 0.6 0.3 0.5 0.1 Marmul 96.3 2.4 0.4 0.9 0.0 Balkh 93.1 2.7 1.2 1.8 1.2 Sholgara 95.9 1.2 0.7 1.2 1.1 Chimtal 95.7 2.1 0.5 1.1 0.5 Dawalat Abad 93.1 3.7 1.1 1.4 0.7 Khulm 90.4 3.7 1.8 2.5 1.6 Char Bolak 97.7 0.8 0.5 0.6 0.4 Shortepa 99.6 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.0 Kaldar 87.3 3.0 2.2 4.0 3.5 Kishendeh 98.8 0.7 0.2 0.2 0.1 Zari 98.4 0.8 0.3 0.4 0.1

23 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

The comparison on the highest class completed with other provinces where TEXT BOX 5: HIGHEST CLASS COMPLETED SDES has been conducted is shown in Text Box 5. Balkh’s proportion of Provinces

persons aged 25 years and above 1-6 Classes 7-9 Classes No Schooling Vocational and and Vocational Classes 10-12 Classes who had reached/attained vocational Higher Education and higher education was higher than Balkh (2015) 73.4 8.2 4.7 8.0 5.7 in Takhar, Samangan, Parwan, Ghor, Takhar (2015) 85.3 4.6 2.6 3.9 3.6 Daykundi and Bamiyan but it is lower Samangan (2015) 86.0 5.3 2.4 3.8 2.5 than in Kapisa and Kabul. Kapisa (2014) 69.3 8.3 5.5 10.6 6.4 Parwan (2014) 74.6 6.8 5.2 9.1 4.3 Net attendance ratios for primary Kabul (2013) 57.7 8.6 7.2 16.6 9.9 (classes 1-6), secondary (classes Ghor (2012) 93.2 1.3 1.9 2.8 0.6 7-9), high school (classes 10-12), and Daykundi (2012) 88.5 3.2 4.1 3.5 0.7 higher education (technical/vocational/ Bamiyan (2011) 90.2 2.3 2.4 3.3 0.6 bachelor degree/master degree/ Source: SDES or PhD) are presented in Table 11. These are the ratios of children in the age group that officially corresponds to class level (i.e., 7-12 years old for primary school, 13-15 years old for secondary school, 16-18 years old for high school and 19-24 years for higher education) to the total number of children in these respective age groups. An estimated 173 thousand children aged 7-12 years old in Balkh were attending primary school at the time of the survey: 48 thousand children aged 13- 15 years were attending secondary school, 36 thousand children aged 16-18 years were in high school, and some 23 thousand persons aged 19-24 years were in higher education. These numbers translate to net attendance ratios of 59.6 percent for primary school, 38.3 percent for secondary school, 25.8 percent for high school, and 11.7 percent for higher education (Table 11). The net primary attendance rate for Balkh was higher than the national rate of 54.5 percent (CSO, 2014).

Net attendance ratios for boys at all levels of education were consistently higher than for girls. The ratio of girls to boys declined with increasing levels of education. In Balkh Province, for every 100 boys aged 7-12 years who were attending primary school, there were 86 girls of the same age group at that level of education. At the high school level, the ratio was lower, with only 76 girls aged 16-18 for every 100 boys attending that level of education.

24 Balkh

Among the districts, Mazar-E-Sharif had the TEXT BOX 6: NET PRIMARY highest female-to-male net primary, secondary ATTENDANCE RATE and high school attendance ratios at 97.6 percent, Male Female 91.9 percent, and 87.5 percent, respectively. In Balkh (2015)* 63.9 55.1 contrast, Char Bolak had the lowest female-to- Takhar (2015)* 59.0 48.4 male net primary attendance ratio at 54.6 percent Samangan (2015)* 57.8 46.2 and Shortepa had both the lowest female-to-male Kapisa (2014)* 83.4 62.0 net secondary and high school attendance ratios Parwan (2014)* 79.8 51.2 at 25.1 percent and 6.1 percent, respectively. Kabul (2013)* 74.4 60.4 Ghor (2012)* 45.7 32.1 For higher education, the net attendance ratio is Daikundi (2012)* 65.7 61.4 lower compared to other levels, with 72 females Bamyan (2011)* 59.5 53.5 aged 19-24 years for every 100 males attending Afghanistan ** 62.4 45.5 either vocational, technical, bachelor degree, Sources: *SDES master degree or doctoral degree. Chimtal reported **ALCS 2013-2014 the highest attendance ratio of 91 females for every 100 males aged 19-24 years.

The net primary attendance rates for both males and females in Balkh Province are higher than in Takhar, Samangan, Ghor, and Bamiyan Provinces, but lower when compared to other SDES provinces (Text Box 6).

25 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey 0.0 5.4 56.7 91.0 80.0 57.5 17.6 86.0 40.1 19.1 71.6 79.2 64.2 78.0 24.6 60.0 Male Female/ 9.8 8.0 0.7 0.7 4.4 0.0 1.9 1.3 4.9 3.8 4.4 4.3 1.0 18.6 10.3 10.6 Female 1.8 4.7 7.0 2.7 7.3 8.7 4.2 5.5 7.5 5.7 12.3 13.7 23.5 12.5 13.2 13.6 Male and above (Ages 19-24) 1.0 3.2 3.8 1.4 7.8 5.8 6.7 4.0 4.9 6.0 7.5 11.4 11.7 21.0 10.2 11.7 Both Both Sexes Vocational and Higher: Classes 13 Vocational and Higher: Classes 13 6.1 39.0 76.1 87.5 82.4 80.9 75.2 53.2 64.5 76.8 54.6 77.8 62.1 75.2 30.9 26.7 Male Female/ 6.0 1.1 7.1 3.0 7.6 5.1 22.4 37.0 22.1 27.7 13.2 15.8 14.9 17.4 16.5 20.7 Female (Ages 16-18) 9.5 9.8 15.4 17.3 29.4 42.3 26.9 34.2 24.8 24.5 19.3 14.0 22.3 26.5 27.5 19.0 Male High School: Classes 10-12 9.8 8.2 6.1 9.3 25.8 39.6 24.5 31.0 18.8 20.2 17.0 10.7 19.8 21.3 24.0 11.9 Both Both Sexes 65.0 83.0 91.9 85.1 82.9 48.3 70.9 79.4 79.5 58.0 87.2 77.9 70.3 48.6 36.6 25.1 Male Female/ 9.1 5.6 14.8 34.7 52.0 35.5 38.4 11.7 33.2 28.0 22.7 14.3 30.5 34.3 23.5 10.0 Female (Ages 13-15) 22.7 41.8 56.7 41.8 46.3 24.2 46.8 35.3 28.5 24.6 35.0 44.0 25.0 22.5 33.4 20.6 Male Secondary: Classes 7-9 Secondary: Classes 7-9 18.9 38.3 54.4 38.7 42.5 18.1 40.4 31.7 25.6 19.7 32.8 39.2 17.3 15.5 28.5 15.4 Both Both Sexes 84.6 86.3 97.6 90.3 92.6 69.1 86.0 74.5 73.0 64.4 80.9 88.9 54.6 59.6 64.8 78.3 Male Female/ 43.5 55.1 75.7 62.1 60.6 40.0 72.7 43.7 38.0 27.3 49.0 59.9 27.9 18.1 29.1 37.3 Female (Ages 7-12) 51.5 63.9 77.6 68.8 65.4 57.9 84.5 58.7 52.0 42.4 60.6 67.4 51.2 30.4 44.9 47.6 Male Primary: Classes 1-6 Primary: Classes 1-6 47.6 59.6 76.7 65.6 63.1 49.0 78.7 51.4 45.1 35.1 54.9 63.7 39.9 24.7 37.4 42.6 Both Both Sexes District Province/ Mazar-E- Sharif Nahr-e-Shahi Dehdadi Char Kent Marmul Balkh Sholgara Chimtal Dawlat Abad Khulm Char Bolak Shortepa Kaldar Kishendeh Zari Balkh Table 11. Net Attendance Ratio by Sex, Level of Education and District: Balkh, December 2015 26 Balkh

Figures 7 and 8 show the male and female school-age population (i.e., aged 7-24 years) who were not attending school at the time of the survey by highest class completed. Some 388thousand young people of Balkh, consisting of 175 thousand males and 213 thousand females, were not attending school at the time of the survey. A large majority of this young people who were not in school had not completed the first class. For Balkh Province, 62.3 percent of males aged 7-24 years who were not attending school at the time of the survey had never attended school or if they had attended school they did not complete the first class. The corresponding proportion among their female counterparts was 74.4 percent. Shortepa had the highest percentage of the male (87.6 percent) and female (97.9 percent) populations aged 7-24 who were not attending school at the time of the survey and had never attended school nor completed the first class. Figure 7. Percentage Distribution of Male Population Aged 7 to 24 Years Who Were Not Attending School at the Time of the Survey by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015

No Schooling Classes 1-6 Classes 7-9 Classes 10-12 Vocational and Higher Educa�on

100.0 87.6 90.0 81.2 81.2 80.5 81.5 77.6 79.9 80.0 76.0 68.8 70.0 62.3 59.7 62.0 60.0 56.6 52.0 50.0 46.4

40.0 36.9

30.0

20.0

10.0

0.0

27 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Figure 8. Percentage Distribution of Female Population Aged 7 to 24 Years Who Were Not Attending School at the Time of the Survey by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015 No Schooling Classes 1-6 Classes 7-9 Classes 10-12 Vocational and Higher Educa�on

97.9 100.0 93.5 91.1 91.5 90.3 87.4 88.1 90.0 83.5 84.6 77.2 80.0 74.4 71.8 69.2 70.0 67.7 70.0

60.0

50.0 47.2

40.0

30.0

20.0

10.0

0.0

10.MIGRATION Although the majority of population of Balkh Province are non-migrants, some 436 thousand residents of Balkh are migrants, which comprised 26.0 percent of the total population of the province. Migrants are defined as those who had resided elsewhere for at least six months in another district within Balkh, in another province of Afghanistan, or abroad. The corresponding proportion among the male population (27.6 percent) was higher compared to the female population (24.5 percent). More than half of the population in Nahr-e-Shahi were migrants (Figure 9).

28 Balkh

Figure 9. Proportion of Migrants by Sex and District:Balkh, December 2015 100.0 90.0 80.0 70.0 Both Sexes Male Female 60.0 51.0 50.0 38.2 40.0 33.0 27.6 30.0 22.3 24.8 18.3 18.0 20.0 13.5 11.7 9.5 8.1 10.2 4.9 10.0 4.1 1.2 0.0

Figure 10 shows the distribution of migrants per district to the total migrants of the 15 districts. Mazar-e-Sharif is the favorite destination with 46.0 percent share of total migrants in the province followed by Nahr-e-Shahi (24.7 percent), while Shortepa had only 0.1 percent of the total migrants in the province. Figure 10. Percentage Distribution of Migrants in the Province by District: Balkh, December 2015 100.0 90.0 80.0 70.0 60.0 50.0 46.0 40.0 30.0 24.7 20.0 10.8 10.0 4.4 3.4 2.0 1.9 1.6 1.5 1.5 1.2 0.4 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.0

29 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Table 12 shows the distribution of the migrant population by previous residence of province/district or abroad. Among those who have resided in a place other than their district or city of residence, in Mazar-e-Sharif, most of the migrants came from other districts of Balkh (35.1 percent), followed by those from other provinces (30.1 percent) while a lower proportion by those from abroad (17.1 percent). Among those who came from abroad, 54.2 percent came from Iran and 36.2 percent from Pakistan.

In most districts of Balkh Province, majority of the migrant population came from abroad. This was the case for Zari (77.5 percent), Kishendeh (67.6 percent), Dawlat Abad (62.5 percent), Char Bolak (55.7 percent), Sholgara (53.7 percent), and Marmul (50.9 percent). In Dehdadi and Char Kent the leading area of origin was other districts of Balkh (53.4 percent and 50.9 percent, respectively). On the other hand, 50.7 percent of migrants in Kaldar came from other provinces. Table 12. Proportion of Migrants by Previous Residence and District: Balkh, December 2015

Previous Residence District Other Districts Neighboring Other Provinces Abroad of Balkh Provinces Mazar-e-Sharif 35.1 17.6 30.1 17.1 Nahr-e-Shahi 37.8 18.2 26.6 17.3 Dehdadi 53.4 20.8 17.0 8.8 Char Kent 50.9 7.4 18.9 22.7 Marmul 39.2 6.1 3.8 50.9 Balkh 44.4 12.2 17.4 26.0 Sholgara 26.4 12.9 7.0 53.7 Chimtal 26.9 9.2 18.9 44.9 Dawlat Abad 21.9 8.1 7.5 62.5 Khulm 30.5 17.8 16.0 35.7 Char Bolak 26.7 9.9 7.7 55.7 Shortepa 42.3 26.7 5.0 26.0 Kaldar 35.4 10.3 50.7 3.6 Kishendeh 18.6 3.6 10.2 67.6 Zari 8.3 4.4 9.7 77.5

30 Balkh

Table 13 shows data on the length of stay in the district of residence at the time of survey for migrants. Of these, 4.7 percent have been residing in their current district of residence for less than one year while 13.7 percent have lived there for 1-3 years. Another 24.1 percent have resided in their current district of residence for 4-9 years, and 27.4 percent for 10-19 years. The largest proportion (30.1 percent) has been living in their current district of residence for 20 or more years. In Nahr-e- Shahi, where 50.6 percent were migrants, the proportion of recent movers (less than seven years) was the highest among the districts at 47.1 percent. The proportion of migrants with lengthy stays (20 years or more) in Shortepa was the highest at 52.1 percent. Table 13. Percentage Distribution of Migrants by Duration of Stay in the Current Residence and District: Balkh, December 2015

Duration of Stay in Current District of Residence Province/District Less than 1 - 3 4 - 6 7 - 9 10 - 19 20 years one year years years years years or more Balkh 4.7 13.7 13.6 10.4 27.4 30.1 Mazar-e-Sharif 5.0 13.9 13.7 10.7 30.2 26.4 Nahr-e-Shahi 7.2 19.8 20.2 12.4 25.2 15.3 Dehdadi 6.2 16.8 16.5 10.4 24.3 25.8 Char Kent 1.8 9.1 9.6 8.6 25.7 45.3 Marmul 3.9 13.0 10.4 9.5 28.7 34.6 Balkh 3.8 12.1 11.6 9.8 28.0 34.7 Sholgara 3.8 11.6 11.6 10.6 27.7 34.7 Chimtal 3.4 11.0 11.2 8.4 25.5 40.4 Dawlat Abad 3.3 10.1 10.8 9.7 27.7 38.4 Khulm 3.1 9.7 9.2 7.7 26.3 44.1 Char Bolak 3.1 11.9 11.9 10.8 27.1 35.2 Shortepa 1.5 7.7 8.6 7.4 22.7 52.1 Kaldar 3.1 11.6 13.3 11.2 27.6 33.4 Kishendeh 4.4 12.6 11.9 9.7 25.1 36.4 Zari 5.2 14.4 12.8 10.9 24.4 32.3

Table 14 shows that four in five of the current residents of Balkh (86.8 percent) were born in this province. Of the 13.2 percent migrants, about 11.5 percent were born

31 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

in other provinces while the remaining 1.7 percent were born in foreign countries. In Nahr-e-Shahi and Mazar-e-Sharif, 3.9 percent and 2.4 percent of their respective total populations, were born overseas. Table 14. Percentage Distribution of Population by Place of Birth and District of Residence: Balkh, December 2015

Place of Birth Province/District Balkh Other Provinces Foreign Country

Balkh 86.8 11.5 1.7 Mazar-e-Sharif 78.4 19.2 2.4 Nahr-e-Shahi 70.0 26.1 3.9 Dehdadi 85.2 13.7 1.1 Char Kent 99.5 0.4 0.1 Marmul 99.5 0.2 0.2 Balkh 94.9 3.7 1.4 Sholgara 96.4 2.3 1.3 Chimtal 97.6 1.8 0.6 Dawlat Abad 98.9 0.5 0.7 Khulm 99.0 0.9 0.1 Char Bolak 98.0 1.3 0.7 Shortepa 99.8 0.2 0.1 Kaldar 85.0 14.7 0.3 Kishendeh 99.6 0.3 0.1 Zari 99.2 0.6 0.2

Survey respondents were asked of each household member ‘’Where was 1 ______‘s usual residence in Nawroz 1390?”. About four in five migrants were in their current district of residence during Nawroz 1390. Only 2.4 percent were living in other districts of Balkh, 3.1 percent in other provinces, and 1.1 percent in other countries while 13.3 percent were not yet born during Nawroz 1390 (Table 15).

1 Nawroz 1390 (March 2011) was used as the common reference period for all SDES to achieve a consolidated population count for the entire country. It was during that year that the first SDES was conducted in Bamiyan.

32 Balkh

Table 15. Percentage Distribution of Migrants by Residence in Nawroz 1390 and District: Balkh, December 2015

Residence in Nawroz 1390 Same Other Not Yet Born Province/ District Other Other District/Same District, Same in Nawroz in Province Country Province Province 1390 Balkh 80.1 2.4 3.1 1.1 13.3 Mazar-e-Sharif 79.9 2.4 4.5 0.9 12.3 Nahr-e-Shahi 70.6 5.8 8.0 1.5 14.1 Dehdadi 76.8 6.1 3.7 0.6 12.8 Char Kent 88.6 0.4 0.1 0.1 10.8 Marmul 80.6 1.3 0.2 1.3 16.6 Balkh 82.6 1.6 1.1 0.7 14.1 Sholgara 83.7 1.0 0.5 1.8 13.1 Chimtal 84.8 0.5 0.8 0.5 13.5 Dawlat Abad 84.1 0.5 0.2 1.2 14.0 Khulm 86.3 0.5 0.3 0.5 12.5 Char Bolak 81.9 0.7 0.4 1.5 15.4 Shortepa 88.0 0.2 0.1 0.1 11.6 Kaldar 84.1 1.5 2.9 0.1 11.5 Kishendeh 80.4 0.6 0.5 3.0 15.5 Zari 80.5 0.2 0.3 3.5 15.5

11. ECONOMIC ACTIVITY The SDES collected data on the main activity carried out during the 12 months prior to the survey by household members 5 years or older. This section is divided into two parts. The first part analyses data on economic activity of 15 years and older population while the second part is about working children age 5-17 years old.

33 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

11.1 Economic Activity of 15 Years Old and Over In Balkh Province, 40.3 percent of the population 15 years or older worked for at least six months during the 12 months prior to the survey (Figure 11). A larger proportion among males (69.7 percent) had worked for at least six months compared to females (10.7 percent). A small proportion (2.3 percent) of the population 15 years or older had worked for less than 6 months (3.0 percent among males and 1.6 percent among females), while persons who did not work at all during the reference period comprised 57.3 percent. Among the females, 87.7 percent did not work while only 27.3 percent among the males did not work during the past year. Figure 11. Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older by Work Status and Sex: Balkh, December 2015 100.0

90.0 87.7 Both Sexes Male Female 80.0 69.7 70.0

60.0 57.3

50.0 40.3 40.0

30.0 27.3

20.0 10.7 10.0 2.3 3.0 1.6 0.0 Worked for at Least 6 Months Worked for Less than 6 Months Did Not Work

Figure 12 shows that the proportion of males aged 15 years and older who had some work (regardless of the number of months worked) during the reference year was much higher (72.7 percent) than among their female counterparts (12.3 percent). This pattern was observed in all districts. For males, the highest percentage was in Chimtal at 83.8 percent, while Shortepa had the highest percentage for females at 42.6 percent. The lowest percentage for males was reported in Marmul (62.6 percent) while Char Kent (3.8 percent) for females.

34 Balkh

Figure 12. Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Sex and District: Balkh, December 2015 100.0 Both Sexes Male Female

90.0 83.8 81.9 81.9 76.7 77.6 78.0 78.0 80.0 74.7 76.5 72.7 74.4 74.5 70.2 71.0 70.0 66.1 62.6 60.0 57.4 49.8 46.9 46.9 50.0 44.5 44.9 46.0 46.1 42.7 43.2 43.3 43.9 42.6 42.7 40.6 38.6 40.0 34.5

30.0 20.0 21.2 20.0 14.7 14.3 12.3 11.2 12.2 11.0 12.8 10.4 10.2 10.6 9.0 6.6 10.0 3.8 0.0

Figure 13 shows that more than half of the persons aged 15 years and older in all districts, except Shortepa (42.6 percent), did not work during the reference period, with the lowest proportion in Kaldar (50.2 percent) and highest in Marmul (65.5 percent). Shortepa had the highest proportion (57.1 percent) of population aged 15 years or older who worked for six months or more followed by Kaldar (49.4 percent), while Marmul had the lowest proportion (30.4 percent). Figure 13. Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older by Work Status and District:Balkh, December 2015 Worked for at Least 6 Months Worked for Less than 6 Months Did Not Work 100.0

90.0

80.0 42.6 53.1 53.1 50.2 57.3 56.8 56.7 56.1 55.5 55.1 54.0 54.0 57.3 70.0 61.4 59.4 65.5 60.0 0.3

50.0 0.4 2.7 2.4 1.8 3.7 2.5 5.5 2.3 2.5 5.3 3.4 40.0 1.3 1.8 6.2 4.1 30.0 57.1 49.4 44.2 44.4 40.3 40.8 40.5 42.6 41.2 43.5 40.6 20.0 37.3 38.8 38.0 36.5 30.4 10.0

0.0

35 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Figure 14 shows that the highest proportion of population 15 years or older who worked for six months or more during the reference period were in the age group 30-34 at 52.1 percent followed by the age groups 40-44 at 51.9 percent and 35-39 at 51 percent. The proportion of those who did not work was highest in the 15-19 age group (74.9 percent) followed by the age group 65 and older (74.4 percent). Conversely, the proportion that worked for less than six months was lowest among the age group 65 and over (1.2 percent) and highest among the age groups 30-34 and 35-39 (2.6 percent each). Figure 14. Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older by Work Status and Age Group: Balkh, December 2015 100.0 Worked for at Least 6 Months Worked Less than 6 Months Did Not work 90.0

80.0 74.9 74.4

70.0

59.0 58.3 60.0 52.1 51.9 52.3 51.0 50.3 49.4 48.5 49.0 47.3 48.5 50.0 45.3 46.4 45.6 45.4 38.7 39.8 40.0

30.0 22.8 24.3 20.0

10.0 2.2 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.6 2.5 2.4 2.1 2.3 2.0 1.2 0.0 15-19 20-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49 50-54 55-59 60-64 65 and over

Of the 540 thousand people aged 15 years or older who did not work during the 12 months prior to the survey, only 15.0 percent were either available for work and had actively sought for work or were available for work but had not sought work for various reasons, such as awaiting the result of a job application, temporary illness, or believed that there was no work for them. About 84.8 percent were not available for work (Figure 15).

At the district level, higher proportions of persons 15 years or older who didn’t work but were available for work were in Balkh, Kaldar and Zari at 38.9 percent, 23.1 percent and 21.9 percent, respectively. At 96.0 percent, Char Kent had the highest proportion of the population 15 years or older who were not available for work (Figure 15).

36 Balkh

Figure 15. Percentage Distribution of Population 15 Years or Older Who Did Not Work by Whether Available for Work or Not and District: Balkh December 2015 Available for Work Not Available for Work

100.0

90.0

80.0

70.0 61.0

60.0 77.0 80.1 77.9 84.8 83.2 82.6 82.0 84.1 88.8 87.8 92.7 89.9 92.2 94.1 50.0 96.0

40.0

30.0

20.0 38.9 23.1 21.9 10.0 16.7 17.3 17.8 15.8 19.8 15.0 10.9 12.1 7.2 10.0 7.7 5.9 0.0 3.9

Figure 16 shows the proportion of the population aged 15 years or older who did not do any work but seeking for work, and those available for work but not looking for work, relative to the total population 15 years or over. For Balkh Province, about 9 of every 100 persons aged 15 years or older were not working but seeking or available for work. This ratio was higher for females than for males: 11 per 100 females while only 6 per 100 males. At the district level, the percentage for females varied from 2.6 percent in Shortepa to 31.9 percent in Balkh District. For males, it varied from 1.0 percent in Char Kent to 11.9 percent in Balkh District.

37 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Figure 16. Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older Who Were Not Working but Seeking or Available for Work by Sex and District: Balkh, December 2015 50.0 Both Sexes Male Female 45.0

40.0

35.0

30.0

25.0

20.0

15.0

10.0

5.0

0.0

Table 16 shows the proportion of the population aged 15 years or older who had some work in the 12 months prior to survey, regardless of the number of months they have worked. Persons who are literate are more likely to engage in an economic activity than those who are illiterate. About 45.3 percent of the population aged 15 years or older who were literate had some work during the reference period compared to 40.8 percent of the illiterate persons.

In the districts, the highest percentage point difference between literate and illiterate populations who worked during the 12 months prior to the survey was in Kishendeh (16.3 percentage points).

38 Balkh

Table 16. Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Literacy Status and District: Balkh, December 2015

Worked in the 12 Months Prior to Survey Province/District Total Literate Illiterate Balkh 42.7 45.3 40.8 Mazar-E-Sharif 38.6 41.8 33.4 Nahr-E-Shahi 43.2 46.7 40.7 Dehdadi 40.6 43.1 38.5 Char Kent 43.3 55.2 39.6 Marmul 34.5 39.5 31.7 Balkh 43.9 48.2 41.8 Sholgara 44.5 50.4 42.1 Chimtal 46.9 57.9 43.6 Dawlat Abad 46.9 49.9 45.4 Khulm 44.9 49.2 42.2 Char Bolak 46.0 52.8 44.2 Shortepa 57.4 55.8 57.7 Kaldar 49.8 46.4 51.6 Kishendeh 46.1 59.4 43.2 Zari 42.7 51.7 40.5

Figure 17 shows that for males and females combined, the percentage of those who were engaged in some economic activities at anytime during the 12 months prior to the survey was lowest among those who attended class 7-12 (39.5 percent) and highest among those who had attained class 1-6 (52.6 percent) and closely followed by those who had reached vocational and higher education (52.1 percent). Among males, the proportion who were engaged in an economic activity at anytime in the 12 months prior to the survey was highest for those who did not attend school or had not completed class 1 (83.1 percent). For those who had reached a primary level (classes 1-6)and had some work the proportion was 75.1 percent while for those with vocational or higher level of education and with work made up 60 percent. Among females, the pattern was different, those who had reached vocational or higher education and with a job during the reference period had the highest percentage (38.9 percent).

39 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

In Balkh Province, the proportion of persons who were not working but seeking or available for work during the 12 months prior to the survey was highest for those who had reached vocational and higher education (12.4 percent) and followed by those who had reached classes 7-12 (10.6 percent). A similar pattern was observed among males who did not work but seeking or available for work. This percentage was highest for those who had reached vocational and higher education (12.2 percent) and followed by those who had reached classes 7-12 (9.6 percent). Likewise among females, the percentage of those who were not working but seeking or available for work during the 12 months prior to the survey was highest among those who reached vocational and higher education (12.7 percent) and lowest for those who had no schooling (10.8 percent).

At the district level, in Shortepa, seven in ten (73.7 percent) of those aged 15 years and older who had reached vocational and higher education did some work during the reference period. Likewise, in Char Bolak, Marmul, Dawlat Abad and Khulm, three in five (65.4 percent, 65.2 percent, 63.8 percent and 60.3 percent, respectively) of those who had reached vocational and higher education did some work during the reference period. In Chimtal, 60.8 percent of the population aged 15 years and older who reached classes 1-6 were reported as having an economic activity in the year prior to survey, the highest in the province. In Kishendeh, 53.4 percent of those aged 15 years old and over who had attended classes 7-12 were reported to have worked during the 12 months prior to the survey (Table 17). Figure 17. Percentage of Population 15 Years or Older by Work Status, Highest Class Completed and Sex: Balkh, December 2015 100.0 No Schooling 90.0 83.1 Classes 1-6 Classes 7-12 80.0 75.1 Vocational and Higher Education 70.0 60.0 60.0 58.0 52.6 52.1 50.0 41.4 39.5 38.9 40.0

30.0

20.0 12.3 12.9 12.4 12.2 11.3 12.7 11.2 9.5 10.6 9.6 10.8 7.6 7.6 10.0 5.5 3.1 0.0 Both Sexes Male Female Both Sexes Male Female Worked in the 12 Months Prior to Survey Not Working but Seeking or Available for Work

40 Balkh

Table 17. Percentage Distribution of Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Highest Class Completed and District: Balkh, December 2015

Vocational and Province/District No Schooling Classes 1-6 Classes 7-12 Higher Education Balkh 41.4 52.6 39.5 52.1 Mazar-E-Sharif 34.2 48.7 36.5 50.3 Nahr-E-Shahi 41.7 54.3 40.8 47.7 Dehdadi 38.6 50.7 38.2 52.7 Char Kent 42.0 53.4 46.2 59.1 Marmul 28.7 50.6 34.9 65.2 Balkh 42.1 55.9 42.4 60.2 Sholgara 43.0 57.4 42.8 59.0 Chimtal 45.0 60.8 51.2 59.4 Dawlat Abad 45.2 55.9 45.1 63.8 Khulm 41.3 59.1 45.4 60.3 Char Bolak 44.5 58.1 45.8 65.4 Shortepa 58.2 50.3 49.7 73.7 Kaldar 52.4 56.5 38.6 52.5 Kishendeh 44.6 55.1 53.4 58.5 Zari 42.2 47.4 43.3 52.4

Figure 18 shows the distribution of population aged 15 years and older by sex, who worked at any time during the 12 months prior to the survey by their major occupation groups based on the International Standard Occupational Classification (ISOC).

The agricultural, forestry and fishery workers accounted for the highest proportion of workers in Balkh Province at 26.5 percent; 29.9 percent among males and 6.3 percent among females. Craft and related trade workers such as manufacturing workers composed the second highest proportion of workers at 18.4 percent. The proportion was higher among females (39.6 percent) compared to males (14.9 percent). Likewise, among female workers, a high proportion of workers was recorded as plant and machine operators and assemblers at 28.8 percent while 17.4 percent were engaged as managers/professionals/technicians and clerks.

41 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Figure 18. Percentage Distribution of the Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Occupation Group and Sex: Balkh, December 2015 100.0

Skilled Agricultural, Forestry and Fishery Workers 90.0 Managers/Professionals/Technicians/Clerks Service and Sales Workers 80.0 Craft and Related Trade Workers Elementary Occupations 70.0 Plant and Machine Operators and Assemblers Others 60.0

50.0

39.6 40.0

29.9 28.8 30.0 26.5

18.4 20.0 16.3 17.4 14.7 14.7 15.3 14.9 13.6 12.3 9.7 8.4 10.0 6.3 5.0 2.5 2.9 2.8 0.2 0.0 Both Sexes Male Female

Agricultural, forestry and fishery workers constituted the largest group of workers in almost all districts except in Mazar-E-Sharif, Nahr-E-Shahi, Sholgara, Shortepa, and Khulm. The proportion of workers in this occupation ranged from 6.5 percent in Mazar-E-Sharif to 42.4 percent in Char Kent. Managers/professionals/technicians and clerks composed the second largest group of workers (20.9 percent) in Mazar- E-Sharif next to service and sales workers (23.1 percent). Elementary occupations which include cleaners and helpers, street and related sales and service workers, food preparation assistants, agricultural forestry and fishery labourers, refuse workers and other elementary workers, comprised the largest group in Narh-E-Shahi at23 percent (Table 18).

42 Balkh

Table 18. Percentage Distribution of Population Aged 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Occupation Group and District: Balkh December 2015

Province/ Clerks Others Skilled Skilled Machine Machine Workers

District Craft and Plant and Plant and Managers/ Managers/ Elementary Elementary Service and Service and Assemblers Agricultural, Agricultural, Occupations Technicians/ Forestry and Forestry and Related Trade Related Trade Professionals/ Sales Workers Operators, and Operators, and Fishery Workers

Balkh 26.5 9.7 13.6 18.4 14.7 14.7 2.5 Mazar-E- 6.5 20.9 23.1 19.5 15.6 11.9 2.5 Sharif Nahr-E- 17.4 8.4 17.1 19.4 23.0 12.0 2.8 Shahi Dehdadi 18.6 14.7 15.5 15.1 16.6 14.4 5.0 Char Kent 42.4 2.6 38.0 3.5 5.3 7.8 0.2 Marmul 33.6 8.4 21.0 12.9 12.4 6.4 5.2 Balkh 30.8 7.4 25.6 10.3 9.7 13.8 2.3 Sholgara 28.1 6.4 30.4 14.5 9.1 9.5 2.0 Chimtal 37.0 4.2 24.9 8.2 6.0 17.9 1.8 Dawlat Abad 28.5 7.1 19.5 23.9 10.7 8.2 2.1 Khulm 11.6 9.1 34.6 22.4 9.0 11.8 1.4 Char Bolak 38.5 4.4 26.2 14.7 8.3 6.2 1.8 Shortepa 35.4 2.9 19.4 37.5 1.2 3.0 0.6 Kaldar 39.8 12.9 14.4 22.0 2.7 4.9 3.3 Kishendeh 36.6 3.8 11.1 12.3 28.5 6.6 1.1 Zari 34.8 4.1 16.2 16.1 9.9 16.6 2.3

Figure 19 shows the distribution of population aged 15 years and older who worked at anytime during the 12 months prior to the survey by sex and major industry groups based on the International Standards Industrial Classification (ISIC).

About 30.9 percent of workers in Balkh were involved in agricultural, hunting, forestry and fishing industry. A high proportion (34.5 percent) among males were working in these industries. Another 22.3 percent of male workers were in community, social and personal services and 14.3 percent in wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels. Among female workers, 63.5 percent worked in manufacturing, 24 percent in community, social and personal services and 9.1 percent in agricultural, hunting and fishing industry. 43 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Figure 19. Percentage Distribution of the Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Industry Group and Sex: Balkh, December 2015 100.0 Agriculture, Hunting, Forestry and Fishing 90.0 Community, Social and Personal Services Manufacturing 80.0 Wholesale and Retail Trade and Restaurants and Hotels Construction 70.0 Others 63.5 60.0

50.0

40.0 34.5 30.9 30.0 22.5 22.3 24.0 20.0 13.4 9.1 10.0 5.1

0.0 Both Sexes Male Female

Table 19 shows that the proportion of workers in agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing recorded the highest in almost all districts except in Mazar-e-Sharif, Nahr-e- Shahi and Dehdadi. The proportion of workers in this industry ranged from 2.1 percent in Mazar-e-Sharif to 70 percent in Chimtal. Three in ten workers in Mazar-e-Sharif (35.3 percent) and Nahr-e-Shahi (30.1 percent) were involved in community, social and personal services. At least 20 percent of workers in Shortepa (37 percent), Dawlat Abad (21.9 percent) and Khulm (20.1 percent) were manufacturing workers.

44 Balkh

Table 19. Percentage Distribution of Population Aged 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Industry Group and District: Balkh, December 2015

Province/ Hotels Others

District Services and Fishing Agriculture, Agriculture, Construction and Personal and Personal Manufacturing Wholesale and Wholesale and Retail Trade and Retail Trade and Restaurants and Restaurants and Hunting, Forestry Hunting, Forestry Community, Social Community, Social

Balkh 30.9 22.5 13.4 12.5 11.8 8.9 Mazar-E- 2.1 35.3 12.2 23.1 12.7 14.6 Sharif Nahr-E- 11.8 30.1 12.2 13.6 19.4 12.9 Shahi Dehdadi 22.6 25.8 11.7 10.7 16.6 12.7 Char Kent 82.8 4.4 3.4 2.8 5.1 1.5 Marmul 42.2 18.0 13.4 4.2 17.7 4.4 Balkh 54.3 17.1 7.9 8.3 6.2 6.0 Sholgara 55.6 15.5 13.7 6.6 5.0 3.6 Chimtal 70.0 8.4 7.8 4.3 3.8 5.6 Dawlat Abad 38.4 13.4 21.9 7.2 16.3 2.8 Khulm 33.1 19.8 20.1 12.0 8.2 6.9 Char Bolak 62.0 8.0 14.1 3.6 8.8 3.5 Shortepa 50.4 5.7 37.0 4.5 0.9 1.5 Kaldar 46.5 22.5 19.5 5.5 1.4 4.7 Kishendeh 54.9 7.5 11.4 4.2 20.4 1.6 Zari 59.6 8.2 15.5 5.5 9.8 1.4

The distribution of the population aged 15 years and older who were engaged in economic activity in the 12 months prior to the survey, by employment status and sex, is shown in Figure 20. Only 1.1 percent of workers were employers during the reference year while 50.4 percent were employees. The self-employed comprised 41.5 percent and family workers, seven percent.

45 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Among the male workers, 1.2 percent were employers during the reference year while 52.6 percent were employees. The self-employed comprised 41.5 percent and family workers, 4.6 percent. Two in five of the female workers (41.7 percent) were self-employed, 36.9 percent were employees and 20.9 percent were family workers. Figure 20. Percentage Distribution of the Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Employment Status and Sex: Balkh, December 2015 100.0

90.0 Employer Employee Self-employed Family worker 80.0

70.0

60.0 52.6 50.4 50.0 41.5 41.5 41.7 40.0 36.9

30.0 20.9 20.0

7.0 10.0 4.6 1.1 1.2 0.5 0.0 Both Sexes Male Female

Figure 21 shows that employees made up the largest proportion of workers in nine districts: Dehdadi (63.6 percent), Khulm (60.4 percent), Nahr-E-shahi (57.0 percent), Marmul (53.9 percent), Mazar-E-Sharif (53.0 percent), Dawlat-Abad (53.9 percent), Balkh (52.5 percent), Kishendeh (48.3 percent) and Char Bolak (45.4 percent). The self-employed comprised the largest share in Shortepa (69.3 percent), Kaldar (54.1 percent), Chimtal (51.4 percent), Zari (49.9 percent), Sholgara (48.0 percent) and Char Kent (46.7 percent). The percentage of family workers was highest in Shortepa (21.6 percent) as compared to other districts while employers were highest in Mazar-E-Sharif (2.1 percent).

46 Balkh

Figure 21. Percentage Distribution of the Population 15 Years or Older Who Worked by Employment Status and District: Balkh, December 2015 Employer Employee Self-employed Family worker 100.0 3.7 4.6 4.1 3.7 1.7 7.0 9.1 7.7 6.2 8.1 5.6 14.6 12.9 16.3 90.0 17.6 21.6

80.0 31.2 41.2 37.2 42.2 45.0 33.0 41.5 70.0 43.4 49.9 48.0 51.4 27.8 41.4 60.0 46.7 54.1 50.0 69.3 40.0 63.6 30.0 53.0 57.0 60.4 50.4 53.9 52.5 53.9 45.4 48.3 44.2 20.0 38.5 42.7 39.4 28.8 10.0 8.9 0.0 1.1 2.1 1.2 1.1 0.3 0.3 0.8 0.2 1.5 0.6 0.4 0.3 0.1 0.8 0.2 0.3

11.2 Working Children Aged 5-17 Years The 2015 Balkh SDES found that 7.0 percent (42 thousand) of children aged 5-17 years worked at any time during the 12 months before the survey, while the remaining 93.0 percent did not work (Table 20). Boys (10.7 percent) were more likely to work than girls (3.1 percent).

Among the districts, Chimtal (13.9 percent), Shortepa (10.4 percent), Kishendeh (10.1 percent), Char Bolak (9.2 percent) and Sholgara (9.0 percent) had the highest proportions of working children in the 5-17 age group.

47 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Table 20. Number and Percentage Distribution of Children 5-17 Years Old by Work Status, Sex, Age Group and District: Balkh, December 2015

Worked at Anytime Number of Children Sex/Age Group/District in 12 Months Prior to Did Not Work 5-17 Years Old Survey (000)

Total 7.0 93.0 593 Sex Boys 10.7 89.3 303 Girls 3.1 96.9 290 Age Group 5-9 0.7 99.3 240 Boys 1.1 98.9 122 Girls 0.4 99.6 119 10-12 4.0 96.0 147 Boys 6.0 94.0 77 Girls 1.9 98.1 70 13-17 16.5 83.5 206 Boys 25.5 74.5 104 Girls 7.3 92.7 101 District Mazar-E-Sharif 4.9 95.1 183 Nahr-E-Shahi 6.6 93.4 78 Dehdadi 5.1 94.9 51 Char Kent 7.4 92.6 10 Marmul 2.7 97.3 4 Balkh 8.7 91.3 55 Sholgara 9.0 91.0 37 Chimtal 13.9 86.1 26 Dawlat Abad 6.6 93.4 39 Khulm 8.4 91.6 17 Char Bolak 9.2 90.8 35 Shortepa 10.4 89.6 9 Kaldar 8.3 91.7 11 Kishendeh 10.1 89.9 21 Zari 7.0 93.0 18

48 Balkh

Figure 22 shows that Mazar-E-Sharif had the largest share of working children at 21.5 percent of the total number of working children in the province, followed by Nahr-E-Shahi (12.4 percent) and Balkh (11.5 percent). The lowest share of working children was in Marmul at 0.3 percent. Figure 22. Percentage Distribution of Working Children 5-17 Years Old by District: Balkh, December 2015 50.0

45.0

40.0

35.0

30.0

25.0 21.5 20.0

15.0 12.4 11.5 10.0 8.6 8.0 7.8 6.2 6.2 5.1 5.0 3.4 3.1 2.2 2.2 1.7 0.3 0.0

As expected, children who were not attending school were more likely to work than those still attending school. Among children aged 5-17 years who were not attending school at the time of survey, 8.5 percent worked at any time during the 12 months before the survey. Among those who were attending school, 5.9 percent worked during the reference period. Among boys aged 5-17 years who were not attending school, 13.8 percent worked during the reference year, higher compared to 8.9 percent of those who were in school. The corresponding percentages for girls were 4.1 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively (Figure 23).

49 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Figure 23. Percentage of Children 5-17 Years Old Who Worked by Sex and School Attendance: Balkh, December 2015 20.0 Both Sexes Male Female 18.0

16.0 13.8 14.0

12.0 10.7

10.0 8.9 8.5 8.0 7.0 5.9 6.0 4.1 4.0 3.1 2.3 2.0

0.0 Total Attending School Not Attending School

Among children aged 13-17 years old who were not attending school, 27.4 percent worked during the reference year, higher compared to 12.0 percent of those who were attending school (Figure 24). Among children aged 10-12 years who were not attending school, 9.1 percent worked during the reference year, while 2.2 percent worked among those who were attending school. For children aged 5-9 years, only 0.5 percent worked among those who were attending school and 0.8 percent among those who were not attending school. Figure 24. Percentage of Children 5-17 Years Old Who Worked by Age Group and School Attendance: Balkh, December 2015 35.0

30.0 27.4

25.0 Attending School Not Attending School

20.0

15.0 12.0

10.0 9.1

5.0 2.2 0.5 0.8 0.0 5 - 9 10 - 12 13-17

50 Balkh

One in three of the working children in Balkh Province was an agricultural, forestry and fishery worker (Figure 25). Among working boys, 39.9 percent worked in this group while 11.9 percent among working girls. Children engaged in craft and related trade were the second largest group at 26.9 percent: boys at 22.4 percent and girls at 42.6 percent. Children engaged in plant and machine operators and assemblers were the third largest group at 15.4 percent (boys at 9.2 percent and girls at 37.2 percent). Figure 25. Percentage Distribution of Working Children 5-17 Years Old by Sex and Occupation Group: Balkh, December 2015

75.0 Agricultural, Forestry and Fishery Workers Service and Sales Workers 65.0 Cra� and Related Trade Workers Elementary Occupa�ons Plant and Machine Operators and Assemblers 55.0 Others

45.0 42.6 39.9 37.2 33.8 35.0 26.9 25.0 22.4

15.4 14.5 12.7 13.2 15.0 10.7 11.9 9.2 6.3 5.0 1.9 0.6 0.7 0.1

Both Sexes Male Female

12. FUNCTIONAL DIFFICULTIES The 2015 Balkh SDES asked questions that sought to determine whether a person had difficulty in seeing, hearing, walking, remembering, communicating and self- caring. These questions were asked for all household members aged 5 years or older in the sample households.

About 1.9 percent of the population aged 5 years or older at the time of the survey had a functional difficulty in at least one of the following: seeing, hearing, walking, remembering, communicating, and self-caring. Figure 26 shows that this proportion was higher among males (2.1 percent) than among females (1.7 percent).

51 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Figure 26. Percentage of the Population Five Years or Older with Functional Difficulty by Sex: Balkh, December 2015 2.5 2.1 2.0 1.9 1.7

1.5

1.0

0.5

0.0 Both Sexes Male Female

Among districts, Char Kent and Zari had the highest proportion of population aged five years or older with functional difficulty (3.4 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively). Kaldar had the lowest percentage with one percent (Figure 27). Figure 27. Percentage of the Population Five Years or Older with Functional Difficulty by District: Balkh, December 2015 5.0

4.0 3.4 3.3

3.0

2.2 2.1 2.0 1.9 1.8 2.0 1.8 1.8 1.7 1.8 1.7 1.8 1.7 1.7

1.0 1.0

0.0

52 Balkh

Figure 28 shows that there seems to be a positive correlation between age and functional difficulty: as age increases the proportion with a functional difficulty also increases. Having at least one type of functional difficulty was more prevalent among those aged 65 years and above (17.8 percent) with higher proportion among women (19.2 percent) than men (16.8 percent).

Among the age group 5 to 9 years, the proportion of having functional difficulty was at 0.9 percent (1.0 percent among boys and 0.8 percent among girls). Self-caring and communicating were the common types of functional difficulty (0.5 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively). Among those in the 65 years and older age group, walking (10.3 percent), seeing (7.1 percent) and hearing (6.1 percent) were the most prevalent types of functional difficulty reported. Figure 28. Percentage of the Population 5 Years or Older With Functional Difficulty by Sex and Age Group: Balkh, December 2015 65 and over

60 - 64

55 - 59

50 - 54

45 - 49

40 - 44

35 - 39

30 - 34 Male Female 25 - 29

20 - 24

15 - 19

10 - 14

5 - 9

0.25 0.20 0.15 0.10 0.05 0.00 0.05 0.10 0.15 0.20 0.25

Figure 29 shows that difficulty in walking was the most commonly reported functional difficulty (0.9 percent). This was higher among males (1.0 percent) compared to females (0.8 percent). The least common type of functional difficulty was communicating which was 0.4 percent. In all difficulties, the proportions among males were higher as compared to females.

53 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Figure 29. Proportion of Population Five Years or Older With Functional Difficulty by Type of Difficulty and Sex: Balkh, December 2015 2.0 1.8 Both Sexes Male Female 1.6 1.4 1.2 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.8 0.8 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.2 0.0 Seeing Hearing Walking Remembering Communicating Self-caring

The proportion of those with functional difficulty was highest among widowed persons at 12.6 percent, followed by those divorced/separated from their spouses at 9.2 percent. While the lowest proportion was for those who were never married nor engaged at 0.9 percent (Figure 30). Figure 30. Percentage of the Population Five Years or Older with Functional Difficulty by Marital Status and Sex: Balkh, December 2015 20.0 17.7 Both Sexes Male Female 15.0 12.6 12.6 11.8

10.0 9.2 7.5

5.0 3.5 2.5 1.5 0.9 1.0 0.8 0.0 Never Married Currently Married Widowed Divorced/Separated

54 Balkh

13. FERTILITY Fertility of women in a population refers to their actual birth performance. Fertility normally relates to live births. The 2015 Balkh SDES included questions designed to gather data on the fertility of women. Specifically the data collected pertain to the number of children ever born (CEB) alive to each ever-married woman in sample households and the number of live births born in the 12 months prior to survey by each ever-married woman below 50 years of age.

Typical census questions on lifetime and recent fertility were asked in the SDES which were addressed to ever-married women aged 10-49 years. On lifetime fertility, questions on total number of live births and number of currently alive and dead were asked for sons and daughters separately. Regarding recent fertility, questions were asked on whether women had a live birth 12 months preceding the survey, and the number of live births by sex.

13.1 Mean Number of Children Ever-Born At the time of the survey, there were about 264 thousand ever-married women aged 15-49 years in Balkh Province. Out of this figure, 11.0 percent did not have any child. As expected, the percentage of ever-married women without children was highest in the age group 15-19 years with those childless comprising more than half (54.4 percent) of all ever-married women in this age group. Those ever-married women aged 15-49 years with one child made up 11.8 percent while those with two children, 13.3 percent.

55 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Table 21. Percentage Distribution of Ever-Married Women Aged 15-49 Years by Number of Children Ever Born and Age of Women: Balkh, December 2015

Number of Children Ever Born Alive Age Age group of EMW Number Number 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Total 11.0 11.8 13.3 12.2 11.5 10.5 9.3 7.3 5.7 3.2 4.2 264,000 15-19 54.4 30.8 11.6 2.4 0.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 15,000 20-24 21.6 28.5 26.7 14.2 5.8 2.1 0.7 0.2 0.1 0.0 0.1 51,000 25-29 8.3 12.6 20.6 21.4 17.3 11.0 5.2 2.2 0.9 0.3 0.2 55,000 30-34 4.9 5.2 9.4 14.1 18.2 17.2 14.2 8.6 4.9 1.8 1.5 41,000 35-39 3.1 2.8 4.8 8.1 11.8 15.4 17.2 14.4 11.2 5.6 5.5 42,000 40-44 3.5 2.9 4.0 5.8 9.5 12.3 14.5 14.2 12.9 8.1 12.3 34,000 45-49 3.2 2.6 3.9 5.6 8.4 11.1 13.2 13.8 13.2 9.6 15.3 26,000

The fertility of Balkh women is high. Table 22 shows that, on the average, Balkh women who were in their early twenties have given birth to two children, while those in their late thirties, about six children. Women in their late forties have given birth to about seven children, on the average.

Women aged 45-49 represent the women with completed fertility. The mean CEB for age group 45-49 can be used to compare the fertility of different populations. Women in Marmul had the highest fertility. Ever-married women aged 45-49 years in this district had given birth to 8.0 children, on average. Shortepa District had the lowest fertility as suggested by the mean CEB of its ever-married women aged 45- 49 years, which is 4.6 children. This may be due to under reporting of children ever born.

56 Balkh

Table 22. Mean Number of CEB Among Ever-Married Women Aged 15- 49 Years by Age of Women and District: Balkh, December 2015 Age Group Mazar-E-Sharif Nahr-E-Shahi Dehdadi Char Kent Marmul Balkh Sholgara Chimtal Dawlat Abad Khulm Char Bolak Shortepa Kaldar Kishendeh Zari Balkh

Total 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.7 4.2 5.3 4.7 4.7 3.9 4.7 4.8 4.7 3.2 4.1 4.5 4.5 15-19 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.5 1.3 1.3 1.4 1.4 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.4 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 20-24 2.1 2.1 2.2 2.3 1.8 2.3 2.2 2.1 2.0 2.0 1.9 2.2 1.5 2.0 2.0 2.0 25-29 3.3 3.2 3.4 3.5 3.0 4.0 3.5 3.4 3.1 3.3 3.2 3.4 2.3 2.9 3.3 3.5 30-34 4.6 4.5 4.6 5.0 4.3 5.8 5.0 4.8 4.1 4.7 4.6 5.0 3.2 4.3 4.8 4.9 35-39 5.8 5.7 5.8 6.2 5.4 7.1 6.2 6.1 5.2 5.9 5.9 6.3 3.9 5.5 6.1 6.2 40-44 6.5 6.3 6.6 6.9 5.9 8.0 6.8 6.7 5.8 6.6 6.7 6.8 4.3 5.8 6.7 7.0 45-49 6.8 6.7 6.8 7.1 6.2 8.0 7.1 7.2 5.9 7.2 7.2 7.0 4.6 5.7 6.8 7.0

Due to the abridged nature of the questions asked on lifetime and recent fertility, the scope for internal validation and cross-checking of the answers given was limited. Responses commonly suffer from two types of errors. First, data on lifetime fertility tends to be reported poorly with increasing age of the mother which often leads to the omission of children who have died or who were no longer living with the mother. Second, recent fertility tends to be systematically underreported by all women, similar to widespread under-enumeration of the youngest children in the household head count (Moultrie TA, et al., 2013).

For SDES, the Relational Gompertz Method was used for fertility estimation which is a refinement of the Brass P/F ratio method. This method estimates the age- specific and total fertility by determining the shape of the fertility schedule from recent births while determining its level from the reported average parities of younger women. This method seeks to remedy the errors commonly found in the fertility data associated with too few or too many births being reported in the reference period, and the under-reporting of lifetime fertility and errors of age reporting among older women (Moultrie et al., 2013).

57 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

13.2 Fertility Level The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) of a population is a measure TEXT BOX 8: TOTAL of fertility level and is defined as the average number of FERTILITY RATE children a woman would have if she went through her Balkh (2015) 6.6 entire reproductive period (15-49 years) reproducing at Takhar (2015) 7.4 the currently prevailing Age Specific Fertility Rate (ASFR). Samangan (2015) 6.9 AFSRs are estimated by dividing the number of births to Kapisa (2014) 7.2 the number of women in a specific age group. Additional Parwan (2014) 6.8 Kabul (2013) 6.3 measures of fertility reported in the table are the General Ghor (2012) 6.1 Fertility Rate (GFR), which represents the annual number Daykundi (2012) 7.6 of births per 1,000 women aged 15-49 and the Crude Birth Bamiyan (2011) 7.8 Rate (CBR), which is expressed as the annual number of live Source: SDES births per 1,000 population.

Table 23 shows a TFR of 6.6 children per woman in Balkh Province. Among districts, total fertility rates ranged from 4.2 in Shortepa to 8.0 in Marmul.

GFR was recorded at 154 births per 1,000 women 15 to 49 years old while CBR was 29 births per 1,000 population. Marmul’s GFR was the highest among the districts (173) while Zari had the highest CBR at 41 births per 1,000 population.

58 Balkh

Table 23. TFR, GFR and CBR by District: Balkh, December 2015

Province/District TFR GFR CBR

Balkh 6.6 154 29 Mazar-E-Sharif 6.5 152 28 Nahr-E-Shahi 6.8 160 33 Dehdadi 7.0 163 30 Char Kent 5.4 128 18 Marmul 8.0 173 38 Balkh 7.2 166 32 Sholgara 7.0 159 27 Chimtal 5.6 142 33 Dawlat Abad 6.9 151 27 Khulm 6.8 149 31 Char Bolak 7.4 166 22 Shortepa 4.2 104 17 Kaldar 5.7 140 22 Kishendeh 7.0 169 30 Zari 7.0 171 41

Figure 31 shows the age specific fertility rates (per 1,000 women) by age of women at the province level. Also shown in Figure 31 are the ASFR of women in Marmul, which has the highest TFR and Shortepa, which had the lowest TFRs. ASFRs for Balkh Province and Marmul both peaked at ages 25-29. On the other hand, teenage fertility is highest in Marmul District.

59 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Fgure 31. Age Specific Fertility Rates of Balkh Province, Marmul and Shortepa Districts: December 2015 450.0

400.0

350.0

300.0

250.0

200.0

150.0

100.0 Balkh Marmul Shortepa 50.0

0.0 15-19 20-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49

14. BIRTH REGISTRATION Birth registration, the official recording of a child’s birth by the government, establishes the existence of the child under law and provides the foundation for safeguarding many of the child’s civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. Article 7 of the convention on the Rights of the Child specifies that every child has the right to be registered at birth without any discrimination (UNICEF n.d.).

SDES used the standard question “Does______have a birth certificate?” for all children under five years of age. Figure 32 shows that 38.4 percent of the births of children under five in Balkh were registered. Boys were more likely to be registered than that of the girls (38.8 percent and 37.9 percent, respectively).

60 Balkh

Figure 32. Percentage of Registered Births for Population Below 5 Years Old by Sex: Balkh, December 2015

70.0

60.0

50.0

38.4 38.8 40.0 37.9

30.0

20.0

10.0

0.0 Both Sexes Male Female

Figure 33 shows the high disparity of birth registration by district. Khulm had the highest proportion of registered births at 72.4 percent while Marmul had the lowest at 17.3 percent. Figure 33. Percentage of Registered Births for Population Below 5 Years Old by District: Balkh, December 2015 100.0 90.0

80.0 72.4 70.0 63.0 60.0 51.7 50.0 45.9 38.4 40.2 36.8 35.2 40.0 32.4 30.1 28.1 30.0 26.5 22.3 20.8 17.8 17.3 20.0 10.0 0.0

61 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

At the district level, boys were more likely to be registered than girls. Exceptions to this pattern are in Kaldar, Chimtal and Dawlat Abad where the birth registration of girls was higher by 2.6 percentage points, 1.1 percentage points and 0.1 percentage point, respectively. Table 24. Proportion of Registered Births for Population Below 5 Years Old by Sex and District: Balkh, December 2015

District/Province Male Female Balkh 38.8 37.9 Mazar-E-Sharif 46.0 45.8 Nahr-E-Shahi 40.2 40.2 Dehdadi 30.9 29.3 Chark Kent 27.3 25.7 Marmul 17.6 17.1 Balkh 37.9 35.5 Sholgara 33.7 31.1 Chimtal 20.3 21.4 Dawlat Abad 51.6 51.7 Khulm 73.0 71.9 Char Bolak 22.7 22.0 Shortepa 63.0 63.0 Kaldar 33.8 36.4 Kishendeh 18.4 17.3 Zari 29.1 27.1

The proportions of registered births in other provinces where SDES was conducted are presented in Text Box 9. Balkh TEXT BOX 9: REGISTERED BIRTHS birth registration (38.4 percent) was higher compared to Balkh(2015) 38.4 Takhar (32.8 percent), Samangan (28 percent), Daykundi Takhar(2015) 32.8 (16.3 percent) and Ghor (9 percent). Samangan(2015) 28.0 Kapisa(2014) 53.8 Parwan(2014) 55.9 Kabul(2013) 66.0 Ghor(2012) 9.0 Daykundi(2012) 16.3

Source: SDES

62 Balkh

15. MORTALITY This chapter presents the estimated rates of infant and under-five mortality in Balkh Province. These are important indicators of a country’s or an area’s socio-economic development and quality of life, as well as the population’s health status. Measures of child mortality also contribute to a better understanding of the progress of population and health programmes and policies.

Early childhood mortality in general and infant mortality in particular are used for monitoring the country’s progress toward SDG 3, to end preventable deaths and newborns and children under 5 years of ages, with all countries aiming to reduce neonatal mortality to at least as low as 12 per 1,000 live births and under-5 mortality to at least as low as 25 per 1,000 live births by 2030.

Early childhood mortality indicators are expressed in age categories and are customarily defined as follows: • Infant mortality: the probability of dying between birth and first birthday

• Under five mortality: the probability of dying between birth and the fifth birthday The SDES included questions that asked ever-married women of reproductive age about children ever born, and number of children currently alive, as well as those who died, by sex.

The Trussel variant of the Brass method, an indirect method, was used to estimate the early childhood mortality indicators for Balkh Province. This method utilized information on aggregate number of children ever born and children still alive (or dead reported by women) classified by the latter’s age group and the Coale-Demeny West Mortality Models.

Table 25 presents infant (IMR) and under five mortality rates (U5MR) with a reference month of April 2012. The estimated infant mortality rate in Balkh Province was 52 infant deaths per 1,000 live births and the under-five mortality was 68 deaths for children below 5 years of age per 1,000 live births. The corresponding figures for males are 58 and 75, respectively, and for females, 46 and 61, respectively.

63 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Table 25. Estimates of Infant Mortality and Under-Five Mortality Rates by Sex: Balkh, December 2015

Sex IMR U5MR Both Sexes 52 68 Male 58 75 Female 46 61

The mortality risk for children of women aged 15-19 is frequently higher than for other age groups. Two factors account for this pattern: the distribution of children by birth order and socio-economic factors. First births are known to be at higher risk of dying than higher-order births, and children born to younger women include an above-average proportion of first births. Women having children at early ages tend to come from lower TEXT BOX 10: EARLY CHILDHOOD MORTALITY socio-economic groups, and their children are thus RATES exposed to above-average mortality (Moultrie et al., IMR U5MR 2013). Balkh (2015) 52 68 Takhar (2015) 59 79 Estimates of infant and under-five mortality rates of Samangan (2015) 81 114 Balkh, Takhar, Samangan, Kapisa, Parwan, Kabul, Kapisa (2014) 55 72 Ghor, Daykundi and Bamiyan Provinces are shown Parwan (2014) 59 80 in Text Box 10. Kabul (2013) 43 54 Ghor (2012) 70 97 The infant and under five mortality rates in Balkh Daykundi (2012) 76 105 are higher than in Kabul, but lower than in other Bamiyan (2011) 86 122 SDES provinces. Caution should be considered in comparing these indicators as their reference years Source: SDES vary due to different timing of the conduct of SDES in these provinces.

16. PARENTS’ LIVING STATUS Figure 34 shows the living status of parents of 258 thousand children below five years old. The figure reveals that 0.9 percent of the children in Balkh Province had lost at least one parent while 99.1 percent of the children had both parents still alive. The proportion of children who had lost only their father was 0.6 percent while 0.2 percent for those who had lost only their mother. The proportion of children below five years old who had lost both parents was 0.1 percent.

64 Balkh

Figure 34. Percentage of Orphaned Children Below 5 Years Old: Balkh, December 2015 1.0 0.9 0.8 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.4

0.3 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.0 Only Mother Alive Only Father Alive Both Father and Mother Dead

Figure 35 presents the living status of parents of children below five years old by district. The proportion was highest in Kishendeh where 1.9 percent of the children in that age group had lost at least one parent while the lowest was in Mazar –e- Sharif, Dawlat Abad, Khulm and Kaldar at 0.7 percent each. The proportion of children aged 0-4 years who had lost both parents was highest in Shortepa at 0.4 percent. Figure 35. Percentage of Orphaned Children Below 5 Years Old by District: Balkh, December 2015

1.4 Only Mother Alive Only Father Alive Both Father and Mother Dead 1.2 1.0

0.8 0.6 0.4

0.2 0.0

65 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

The comparison on the parent’s living status in Balkh, Takhar, Samangan, Kapisa, TEXT BOX 11: PARENTS’ LIVING STATUS Parwan, Kabul, Ghor and Daykundi is shown alive alive alive in Text Box 10. Balkh’s proportion of children dead Only father Only father Only father Only mother who had lost at least one parent was higher Both parents than in Kabul (0.75 percent) but lower than Balkh (2015) 0.63 0.22 0.22 0.05 in Takhar (1.06 percent), Samangan (1.21 Takhar (2015) 0.76 0.26 0.26 0.04 percent), Kapisa (1.07 percent), Parwan Samangan (2015) 0.78 0.34 0.34 0.09 (0.92 percent), Ghor (1.50 percent), and Kapisa (2014) 0.81 0.22 0.22 0.04 Daykundi (2.5 percent). Moreover, among Parwan (2014) 0.65 0.21 0.21 0.06 the eight provinces, Takhar and Kapisa Kabul (2013) 0.49 0.21 0.21 0.05 recorded the lowest proportion of children Ghor (2012) 0.70 0.60 0.60 0.20 who had lost both their parents followed by Daykundi (2012) 1.50 0.60 0.60 0.40 Balkh and Kabul. Source: SDES

17. HOUSEHOLD CHARACTERISTICS 17.1 Size of Households The Province of Balkh had a total of 255 thousand households TEXT BOX 12: with an average household size of 6.5 persons, which is AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD lower than the national average (7.4 persons). Households SIZE with 2-5 members accounted for 39.2 percent, while one- Balkh (2015)* 6.5 person households comprised only 0.9 percent. Among Takhar (2015)* 6.7 the districts, Zari (5.1 persons), Char Kent (5.2 persons), Samangan (2015)* 5.9 Kishendeh (5.3 persons), Chimtal (5.6 persons), Shortepa Kapisa (2014)* 6.8 (6.1 persons), Khulm (6.3 persons), Marmul (6.4 persons) Parwan (2014)* 6.8 and Nahr-e-Shahi (6.4 persons) had a lower average Kabul (2013)* 6.9 household size than the provincial average (Table 26). Ghor (2012)* 5.6 Daykundi (2012)* 9.0 Bamiyan (2011)* 7.4 Afghanistan** 7.4

Sources: *SDES **ALCS 2013-2014

66 Balkh

Table 26. Percentage Distribution of Households by Size, Average Household Size and District: Balkh, December 2015

Total Number of Members

Province/

District Size 1 Person 2 Persons 3 Persons 4 Persons 5 Persons 6 Persons 7 Persons 8 Persons 9 Persons Average Household Average Household 10 persons or more

Balkh 0.9 6.5 8.8 11.4 12.5 13.2 12.8 11.0 8.1 14.6 6.5 Mazar-e- 0.7 4.4 7.6 11.2 12.7 14.1 13.8 11.8 8.4 15.3 6.8 Sharif Nahr-e- 0.6 5.6 8.9 12.3 13.9 14.4 13.6 10.8 7.8 12.1 6.4 Shahi Dehdadi 0.7 4.5 7.8 11.2 12.3 13.8 13.7 11.5 9.7 14.9 6.7 Char Kent 1.1 15.8 14.7 12.8 13.3 12.7 11.1 8.1 4.9 5.6 5.2 Marmul 0.6 7.8 9.4 11.2 12.4 14.5 13.1 9.9 7.1 14.0 6.4 Balkh 0.7 4.8 7.0 10.0 10.6 12.0 12.6 12.2 9.5 20.6 7.2 Sholgara 0.8 6.7 7.8 10.2 11.9 11.9 13.5 12.2 8.6 16.4 6.8 Chimtal 0.6 10.3 14.7 15.5 14.0 11.9 9.8 7.8 5.6 9.8 5.6 Dawlat Abad 0.7 4.5 6.5 8.8 10.3 12.8 12.3 12.0 10.1 21.8 7.4 Khulm 2.1 7.5 10.2 11.3 12.1 11.4 12.5 11.5 8.3 13.3 6.3 Char Bolak 0.5 7.3 7.4 9.1 10.3 11.4 11.3 11.4 10.0 21.4 7.2 Shortepa 1.6 5.5 10.7 13.5 16.2 14.3 11.2 9.0 6.7 11.4 6.1 Kaldar 0.7 4.8 7.7 12.1 12.1 13.9 12.9 10.9 8.5 16.5 6.8 Kishendeh 2.5 14.7 13.2 13.0 13.4 13.0 10.3 8.2 5.3 6.4 5.3 Zari 3.4 15.3 13.5 13.4 13.2 11.9 10.1 7.9 5.3 6.1 5.1

17.2 Main Source of Energy for Cooking The most common source of energy for cooking in Balkh Province was Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) which was used by 37.6 percent of households (Figure 36). Animal dung was used by 24.4 percent of households, wood by 15.4 percent, straw/

67 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

shrubs/grass by 12.4 percent, and other types of fuels such as kerosene, charcoal, electricity, biogas, coal/lignite and agricultural crop residues by the remaining 10.2 percent of the households.

LPG was a popular fuel for cooking in Mazar-E-Sharif (82.1 percent), Nahr-e- Shahi (55.7 percent) and Dehdadi (37.5 percent). Animal dung was the main source of energy for cooking in Zari (85.6 percent), Kishendeh (72.1 percent), Sholgara (61.9 percent), Dawlat Abad (55.6 percent) and Char Bolak (51.6 percent). Wood was the main source of energy for cooking in Shortepa (98.1 percent), Kaldar (68.1 percent) and Khulm (50.9 percent), while straw/shrubs/grass was used as energy for cooking in Marmul by 88.1 percent of households. Figure 36. Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Source of Energy for Cooking and District: Balkh, December 2015 100% 5.5 6.3 3.8 4.8 0.7 2.0 1.6 10.2 8.8 11.3 9.6 90% 17.7 14.9 9.7 16.5 20.6 17.1 18.3 3.1 12.4 12.5 19.5 29.4 80% 8.0 1.8 0.5 20.2 15.9 7.5 70% 47.9 24.2 29.2 11.1 21.7 60% 37.6 37.5 88.1 17.2 6.9 50% 82.1 98.1 55.7 2.6 9.5 50.9 40% 85.6 68.1 72.1 30% 15.4 61.9 23.0 29.1 55.6 46.3 51.6 20% 43.4 24.4 9.2 10% 15.7 18.6 5.2 9.4 10.5 11.6 0% 2.5

Animal dung Wood LPG Straw � Shrubs � Grass Others

17.3 Main Source of Energy for Heating Animal dung/bushes was the main source of energy for heating in Balkh Province and was used by 36.9 percent of households (Figure 37). Wood was the second source of energy for heating in the province and was used by 24.5 percent of households, followed by coal (17.4 percent), and charcoal (11.4 percent). The remaining 9.9 percent of households used other types of fuels such as gas/ kerosene/ diesel, electricity, etc.

The majority of the households used animal dung/bushes as fuel for heating in Marmul (97.1 percent), Char Kent (93.7 percent), Zari (93.0 percent), Kishendeh (83.4 percent), Char Bolak (79.4 percent), Chimtal (71.3 percent), Dawlat Abad (70.6 percent) and Sholgara (68.0 percent). 68 Balkh

Wood was used for heating by nine in ten households in Shortepa (97.5 percent) while coal was also the main source of fuel for heating in Nahr-e-Shahi and Mazar- E-Sharif and was used by 42.3 percent and 31.2 percent of households, respectively. Figure 37. Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Source of Energy for Heating and District: Balkh, December 2015

100% 2.3 2.3 0.3 1.7 9.9 7.5 4.0 5.0 1.5 0.7 4.6 11.6 4.2 11.0 14.7 7.9 90% 21.8 3.6 18.6 1.7 5.3 8.4 7.3 24.0 27.2 1.9 80% 17.4 14.3 11.4 47.5 70% 42.3 11.4 43.3 60% 31.2

50% 24.5 97.5 33.2 93.7 97.1 93.0 12.5 40% 79.4 81.2 83.4 20.1 68.0 71.3 70.6 31.1 30% 17.0 43.9 20% 36.9 22.3 32.4 10% 20.7 18.5 0% 4.5

Animal Dung � Bushes Wood Charcoal Coal Others

17.4 Main Source of Energy for Lighting Electricity (from generator, gridline or hydropower) was the leading source of energy for lighting among the households in Balkh Province. It was used by more than half (56.0 percent) of the households in the province, followed by solar (36.4 percent) as shown in Figure 38. A small proportion of households (1.7 percent) reported other sources of energy for lighting such as gas lamp, candle, etc.

The majority of the households in Kaldar (94.5 percent), Mazar-E-Sharif (93.1 percent), Nahr-e-Shahi (83.7 percent), Dehdadi (77.6 percent), Khulm (69.6 percent) and Balkh (62.8 percent) used electricity for lighting.

Solar energy was the main source of energy for lighting in Shortepa (96.1 percent of the total households), Dawlat Abad (94.1 percent), Sholgara (86.6 percent), Marmul (84 percent), Char Bolak (83.4 percent), Char Kent (81.3 percent) and Chimtal (81.2 percent).More than 10 percent of the households in Char Kent (17.1 percent), Kishendeh (15.9 percent), Marmul (14.7 percent) and Zari (11.6 percent) used kerosene as the second leading source of energy for lighting.

69 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Figure 38. Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Source of Energy for Lighting and District: Balkh, December 2015 100% 3.4 1.9 4.7 4.7 4.5 6.0 2.7 3.8 4.5 7.2 9.6 5.7 4.1 7.2 7.5 90% 10.4 17.1 14.7 11.6 15.1 15.9 80% 21.9 36.4 28.0 70% 60% 50% 81.2 83.4 93.1 86.6 94.1 96.1 94.5 83.7 84.0 80.9 40% 77.6 81.3 79.2 69.6 62.8 30% 56.0 20% 10% 11.8 8.0 0% 2.7 3.0

Electricity Solar Kerosene Lamp Others

17.5 Main Source of Water for Drinking, Washing, Cooking and Other Uses In Balkh Province, the main source of drinking water was protected well (18 percent). The majority of the households in Shortepa (56.1 percent) drew water from this source (Table 27).

Table 27 shows also that more than half (53.1 percent) of the households in Balkh 2 Province had access to improved sources of drinking water . About 20.2 percent of households drew water from piped water into dwelling/compound/neighbors, 18.0 percent from protected wells, 13.3 percent from tube well boreholes and 1.6 percent from protected spring.

Shortepa had the largest proportion of households with access to improved drinking water sources (79.9 percent), followed by Mazar-e-Sharif (76.2 percent), Nahr-e- Shahi (63.2 percent) and Dehdadi (62.6 percent).

2 Improved drinking water sources include piped water into dwelling/yard or compound/neighbor, tube well borehole, protected dug well and protected spring.

70 Balkh

Eight in ten households in Marmul (80.3 percent) obtained TEXT BOX 13: drinking water from unprotected spring while one in two PROPORTION OF households (53.3 percent) in Khulm got its drinking water HOUSEHOLDS USING from surface water such as river, stream, dam, lake, pond, IMPROVED DRINKING etc. WATER SOURCES Balkh (2015) 53.0 The proportion of households using improved drinking Takhar (2015)* 47.8 water sources in the provinces where SDES has been Samangan (2015)* 19.7 completed is shown in Text Box 13. In Balkh Province, the Kapisa (2014)* 44.1 proportion of households using improved drinking water Parwan (2014)* 41.3 sources is the second to the highest after Kabul but lower Kabul (2013)* 78.4 than the national estimate. Ghor (2012)* 20.3 Daykundi (2012)* 14.0 Bamiyan (2011)* 15.5 Afghanistan** 64.8

Sources: * SDES **ALCS 2013-2014

71

Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey Zari

8.2 3.1 4.2 0.5 4.4 0.4 0.1 4.1 8.7 13.6 12.6 17.8 32.7

24.1 100.0 Kishendeh

9.4 0.7 0.0 2.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 2.7

13.8 23.3 33.0 40.8 100.0 Kaldar

1.0 2.2 3.8 0.6 1.5 3.2 4.2 6.1 9.2

26.0 33.6 12.0 59.6 11.8 100.0 Shortepa

6.3 0.9 5.0 0.1 0.1 0.1 7.2 0.6 0.5 0.2

56.1 17.2 61.1 13.4 100.0 Char Bolak Char

0.6 0.4 0.1 0.0 0.1 1.0 0.4 0.3 0.1

12.4 31.1 11.4 43.6 43.4 100.0 Khulm

1.4 0.5 0.9 7.3 0.4 1.9 0.7 4.5 4.1

15.4 11.6 27.6 12.4 53.3 100.0 Dawlat Abad Dawlat

0.8 1.1 0.6 0.0 0.1 1.9 0.2 1.4 0.6

13.7 27.2 12.5 40.8 43.2 100.0 Chimtal

0.8 3.4 0.1 6.0 0.0 0.0 4.1 2.3 2.1 2.2

17.0 26.1 23.0 42.4 100.0 Sholgara

0.8 1.7 0.1 0.9 0.1 2.5 9.2 8.2 4.8

26.0 16.1 21.1 42.1 20.2 100.0 Balkh

0.6 0.5 0.9 0.9 1.7 1.2 1.5 8.8 5.4

10.9 29.0 25.5 40.0 23.1 100.0 Marmul

0.1 6.7 0.2 2.9 0.0 0.1 0.0 7.5 7.2 0.0 3.0 2.5

80.3 87.0 100.0 Char Kent Char

0.1 0.7 0.0 0.0 5.0 5.0 0.1 8.2

14.8 13.0 12.2 25.2 46.0 15.5 100.0 Dehdadi

5.4 9.4 2.8 3.7 0.3 0.2 0.5 0.7

17.0 31.2 13.6 27.7 20.6 19.2 100.0 Nahr-e-Shahi

8.8 4.7 9.8 0.8 0.7 2.2 1.5 5.9

17.6 19.6 49.3 18.1 11.6 29.4 100.0 Mazar-e-Sharif

8.8 0.9 0.4 0.1 0.4 0.5 2.7

23.3 16.3 11.6 63.5 19.8 15.7 17.2 100.0 Balkh 5.9 3.7 7.8 1.6 2.6 4.1 8.4 10.6 18.0 31.3 11.1 13.3 25.8 17.1 100.0 Water Water Piped into dwelling Piped into compound Piped to neighbor well Protected Unprotected well spring Protected Unprotected spring Source of Drinking Source of Drinking Piped Water Public tap Tube well borehole Dug Well Water from Spring Surface Water (river, stream, dam, lake, pond, canal) Others Total Table 27. Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Source of Drinking Water and District: Balkh, December 2015 of Drinking Main Source by of Households Table 27. Percentage Distribution 72 Balkh

Figure 39. Proportion of Households with Access to Improved Drinking Water Source by District: Balkh, December 2015 100.0

90.0 79.9 80.0 76.2

70.0 63.2 62.6 58.6 60.0 53.0 49.6 50.0 43.3 41.2 40.2 40.0

30.0 22.7 18.3 20.0 13.8 11.6 9.9 9.1 10.0

0.0

Surface water was the main source of water for washing, cooking and other uses for most households (21.6 percent) in Balkh. More than 49 percent of the households in Khulm (76.7 percent), Char Bolak (56.4 percent), Chimtal (49.8 percent) and Dawlat Abad (49.2 percent) used surface water for these purposes while seven in ten households (71 percent) in Shortepa used protected well (Table 28).

73

Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey Zari

7.9 3.5 8.6 4.0 0.4 0.4 0.1 4.1 2.5

25.9 17.6 32.4 12.7 13.6 100.0 Kishendeh

0.2 2.7 0.1 0.7 9.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.0 0.0

40.9 23.3 33.0 13.3 100.0 Kaldar

3.9 3.9 3.3 1.6 2.4 3.6 0.6 1.3 6.2

11.2 66.0 11.6 26.7 39.3 100.0 Shortapa

1.1 8.4 0.5 0.2 2.2 6.9 1.4 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.0

16.6 73.3 71.0 100.0

Bolak Char Char

6.9 0.7 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.1

56.4 35.2 10.6 24.6 100.0 Khulm

0.8 2.9 0.4 7.8 0.3 0.4 2.5 6.3 3.3 0.1 7.5 1.8

76.7 11.4

100.0

Abad Dawlat Dawlat

1.9 0.2 1.3 0.8 1.0 0.5 0.0 0.2 0.5

49.2 11.3 36.2 12.9 23.3 100.0 Chimtal

1.3 4.6 0.2 0.4 4.2 0.1 0.1 0.0 3.0 0.0

49.8 24.0 20.1 17.1 100.0 Sholgara

4.4 2.6 7.4 0.6 2.0 0.1 0.7 0.0 6.6

29.0 19.7 37.0 24.9 12.1 100.0 Balkh

1.0 1.5 8.8 0.5 0.5 1.0 1.0 1.6 5.2

34.8 20.3 33.6 10.5 23.0 100.0 Marmul

2.5 0.0 0.0 3.2 7.4 0.1 6.7 0.2 0.0 0.1 3.0 7.1

87.0 80.3 100.0 CharKent

7.4 0.1 5.1 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.7 5.0

25.3 45.9 16.4 15.7 13.4 11.8 100.0 Dehdadi

0.5 0.7 5.7 9.0 2.2 3.5 0.2 0.3

31.2 24.8 15.0 27.9 11.5 10.9 100.0

Shahi Nahr-e-

3.8 1.3 4.6 4.8 0.7 0.7

10.6 30.0 49.7

19.2 10.0 10.0 19.9 15.7 100.0

Sharif Mazar-e-

0.7 0.5 2.1 8.8 0.9 0.4 0.1

15.8 17.2 63.8 23.5 11.7 16.3 19.8 100.0 Balkh 4.2 7.8 5.9 3.7 7.6 1.5 2.7 21.6 12.0 24.0 30.4 10.6 16.4 10.3 100.0 Source of Water Piped into dwelling Piped into compound Piped to neighbor well Protected Unprotected well spring Protected Unprotected spring Tube well borehole Water from Spring Surface Water (river, stream, dam, lake, pond, canal) Others Dug Well Piped Water Public tap Total Table 28. Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Source of Water for Cooking, Washing and Other and Other Cooking, Washing for of Water by Main Source of Households Distribution Table 28. Percentage 2016 Balkh, and District: Household Uses 74 Balkh

17.6 Land Ownership Figure 40 shows that about 38.9 percent of the households in Balkh Province owned an agricultural land. Nine in ten households in Shortepa (94.8 percent) owned an agricultural land while more than half of the total households (from 50.4 percent to 68.4 percent) in other districts except Khulm, Dehdadi, Nahr-E-Shahi and Mazar- E-Sharif. The size of land owned, however, was small: 41.3 percent of those with 2 2 land owned less than five gerib or 10,000 m (1 gerib = 2,000 m ). Figure 40. Proportion of Households with Agricultural Land Owned by District: Balkh, December 2015 100.0 94.8

90.0

80.0 68.4 66.8 66.6 70.0 64.0 63.5 61.3 60.0 54.6 53.8 53.5 50.4 50.0 43.7 38.9 40.0

30.0 27.2 21.7 20.0 16.1

10.0

0.0

17.7 Ownership of Livestock and Poultry Raising of cattle/milk cow/bull was the most common livestock raising activity in Balkh where 28.0 percent of the households reported owning a cattle/milk cow/bull at the time of the survey (Table 29). The primary purpose of raising this livestock was for food (milk, yoghurt, meat, ghee or dried whey) or to provide fuel for cooking and heating (dung). Most of the households owning cattle/milk cow/bull (76.7 percent) owned only one or two heads.

About 20.7 percent of households owned at least one horse/donkey/or a mule, which may be used for transport. Most households (83.3 percent) owned only one or two horses/donkeys/mules.

75 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

The proportion of households owning a goat was 18.5 percent with 57.5 percent of them owning 1-6 head(s). A lower proportion of households in Balkh (14.9 percent) owned sheep, of which 45.8 percent owned 1-6 head(s).

Raising chickens was popular among households involved in poultry raising. About 31.5 percent of households in Balkh were raising at least one chicken. Majority of the households raised chicken for food where about 54.7 percent of them raised less than five chickens. A very small proportion of households in the province raised either duck or turkey (2.7 percent).

At the district level, four in five households (85.4 percent) in Shortepa owned a cattle/milk cow/bull. Seven in ten households in Char Kent and Kishendeh (78.4 percent and 76.6 percent, respectively) owned a horse/donkey/mule and at least a goat in Char Kent (72.3 percent). Table 29. Proportion of Households by Ownership and Type of Livestock/ Poultry and District: Balkh, December 2015

Cattle/Milk Horse/Donkey/ Duck/ Province/District Goat Sheep Chicken Cow/ Bull Mule Turkey

Balkh 28.0 20.7 18.5 14.9 31.5 2.7 Mazar-E-Sharif 4.3 0.5 1.8 1.9 7.7 0.4 Nahr-E-Shahi 11.2 5.4 7.4 6.1 15.3 1.0 Dehdadi 19.8 3.4 5.0 4.9 22.1 1.1 Char Kent 15.5 78.4 72.3 38.4 48.5 4.5 Marmul 41.8 66.4 29.8 28.0 39.0 0.1 Balkh 46.9 15.0 11.9 11.6 45.7 2.3 Sholgara 46.0 60.7 38.2 31.3 56.3 6.5 Chimtal 52.3 49.0 40.1 39.0 67.0 8.1 Dawlat Abad 57.8 24.0 33.8 23.5 57.0 2.3 Khulm 32.6 20.1 24.4 29.7 32.5 1.8 Char Bolak 61.0 20.4 29.4 19.0 56.0 4.9 Shortapa 85.4 24.9 28.0 52.3 77.7 1.4 Kaldar 46.7 12.0 14.7 25.0 48.6 0.8 Kishendeh 40.4 76.6 59.4 29.0 47.0 7.8 Zari 50.1 68.8 44.1 31.7 47.9 9.4

76 Balkh

17.8 Households Assets and Facilities Table 30 shows that in Balkh Province as a whole, 92.7 percent of households had electricity (from solar/generator/hydropower/gridline) in their houses. In Mazar-e- Sharif, this proportion was the highest among the districts at 99 percent.

Mobile phone was the second most common item (among the list of 15 items) owned by members of households in the province (80 percent). The necessity of a mobile communication facility is evident in all districts ranging from 45.2 percent of households in Zari to 94.3 percent in Mazar-e-Sharif. Watch was also a common item owned by members of households at 47.3 percent.

A comparison of media and communication equipment reveals that some households owned a television set (58.6 percent) and/or a radio (23.4 percent). Television set ownership was highest in Mazar-e-Sharif (90.7 percent) while radio ownership was highest in Chimtal (41.2 percent). A few households had an internet access (8.5 percent) with the highest proportion in Mazar-e-Sharif (20 percent).

About 22.9 percent of households had a motorcycle for personal or business use, while 10.2 percent had a car. Seven in 10 households (74.1 percent) in Shortepa owned a motorcycle.

77

Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey Generator

6.4 5.8 5.3 1.6 1.6 4.7 3.8 3.0 4.9 4.6 3.1 2.3 4.6 1.3 0.8 11.8 Truck

2.9 3.4 4.0 3.6 0.6 1.8 3.1 4.1 6.9 4.0 4.2 3.7 5.1 2.9 1.7 1.6 Car

8.7 9.8 0.7 3.8 7.8 3.7 7.2 3.4 4.4 4.4 3.9 9.3 1.3 1.1 19.8 10.2 Cart

0.7 2.1 1.4 1.2 0.3 0.0 7.0 0.5 2.7 3.1 1.6 4.4 0.9 0.2 0.2 18.9 Motorcycle

9.1 9.6 6.8 7.9 13.9 74.1 22.9 19.5 18.5 35.9 22.7 43.7 36.4 27.4 41.1 40.3 Bicycle

0.8 4.2 1.2 1.0 36.8 72.1 31.0 31.2 31.1 42.1 14.9 25.2 47.0 20.4 41.1 35.9 Computer

3.1 0.7 4.4 0.5 0.8 7.4 3.4 2.4 3.1 4.7 2.1 28.3 13.1 11.7 14.2 13.1 Watch

42.7 66.4 47.2 77.2 51.5 42.5 47.3 35.1 43.2 52.3 49.0 68.0 53.8 45.0 60.9 59.5 Internet

0.7 0.5 4.6 0.5 0.5 8.5 6.5 6.9 4.7 1.2 1.1 1.8 2.1 0.8 9.7 20.0 Washing Machine Washing

0.2 0.1 0.4 0.1 0.1 8.6 0.4 0.9 0.5 0.7 46.8 20.0 18.0 19.6 18.6 19.3 Refrigerator

0.6 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.2 0.3 2.3 0.5 0.9 51.5 23.7 23.9 25.5 13.8 29.2 29.7 Landline Phone Landline

2.7 0.3 0.1 0.5 0.1 0.2 1.3 0.5 2.3 0.8 0.3 0.2 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.7 Mobile Phone Mobile

94.3 69.7 48.3 78.5 51.1 45.2 80.0 87.8 84.3 81.7 70.6 52.9 77.6 79.7 75.7 84.4 Television

7.4 6.3 8.7 6.4 90.7 24.5 58.6 76.0 72.6 59.6 28.0 27.9 34.4 63.2 17.7 50.1 Radio

9.5 20.2 34.5 22.1 19.4 10.2 12.5 23.4 18.7 21.7 27.4 21.4 41.2 39.9 29.3 33.8 Electricity 99.0 93.2 75.9 84.3 76.1 80.2 92.7 96.1 92.9 91.0 88.0 92.3 88.4 91.7 90.7 97.8 District Province/ Province/ Mazar-E- Sharif Nahr-e- Shahi Dehdadi Char Kent Marmul Balkh Sholgara Chimtal Dawlat Abad Khulm Char Bolak Shortepa Kaldar Kishendeh Zari Balkh Table 30. Proportion of Households by Type of Asset/Facility Present in the Households in the Households Present of Asset/Facility of Households by Type Table 30. Proportion 2015 Balkh, December and District:

78 Balkh

18. HOUSING CHARACTERISTICS 18.1 Construction Materials of Roofs The majority (53.1percent) of the households in Balkh Province were residing in houses with roofs made of soil/mud with wood/logs. More than one fourth of the total households (26.0 percent) were living in houses with roofs made of bricks with soil/ mud, 11.7 percent of the households stayed in houses with roofs made of lime with bricks and combination of metal, 4.9 percent were staying in houses with roofs made of cement while 3.3 percent were living in housing units with roofs made of soil/mud with wood and combination of metal (Table 31).

At the district level, the proportion of households living in houses with roofs made of soil/mud with wood/logs was highest in Marmul (99.6 percent) and lowest in Dawlat Abad (4.2 percent). Nine in ten households (94.3 percent) in Dawlat Abad stayed in housing units with roofs made of bricks with soil/mud while 28.4 percent and 22.7 percent, respectively of the households in Nahr-e-Shahi and Mazar-E-Sharif were staying in housing units with roofs made of lime with bricks and combination of metal.

79 Balkh Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey

Table 31. Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Construction Materials of the Roofs of the Housing Units and District: Balkh, December 2015

Soil/ Bricks Lime with Mud with with Soil/Mud with Province/District Bricks Cement Others wood/ Soil/ Wood and Metal and Metal Logs Mud Balkh 53.1 26.0 11.7 4.9 3.3 1.0 Mazar-E-Sharif 51.5 5.9 22.7 12.5 5.9 1.4 Nahr-e-Shahi 39.2 20.1 28.4 4.4 5.6 2.3 Dehdadi 47.0 36.6 7.1 4.8 3.4 1.1 Char Kent 99.1 0.4 0.0 0.0 0.4 0.0 Marmul 99.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.4 0.0 Balkh 43.1 52.5 2.4 0.5 1.2 0.5 Sholgara 93.3 3.4 0.9 0.1 2.1 0.2 Chimtal 30.5 67.4 1.4 0.2 0.4 0.1 Dawlat Abad 4.2 94.3 0.6 0.2 0.4 0.3 Khulm 67.2 30.5 0.9 0.2 0.7 0.6 Char Bolak 16.4 82.5 0.6 0.1 0.2 0.3 Shortepa 99.3 0.1 0.1 0.0 0.5 0.1 Kaldar 85.5 0.1 2.2 3.6 4.6 4.0 Kishendeh 96.7 1.7 0.2 0.1 1.2 0.1 Zari 99.2 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.6 0.1

18.2 Construction Materials of the Outer Walls Table 32 shows that more than half (56.4 percent) of the households in the province lived in houses with soil/mud with stone as the main construction materials for the outer walls while more than a quarter (26.3 percent) in housing units with outer walls made of uncovered adobe and 12.8 percent were in houses made of bricks.

Among the districts, Marmul had the highest proportion of households (99.9 percent) residing in housing units with outer walls made of soil/mud with stone while Mazar- e-Sharif constituted the lowest proportion of households (18.3 percent).

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Uncovered adobe was the most prevalent construction material for the outer walls of the housing units in Khulm and Mazar-e-Sharif (49.8 percent and 44 percent, respectively). Bricks was also a common construction material for the outer walls in Mazar-e-Sharif (28.4 percent) and in Nahr-E-Shahi (24.5 percent). Table 32. Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Construction Materials of the Outer Walls of the Housing Units and District: Balkh, December 2015

Soil/Mud with Uncovered Stone with Province/ District Bricks Others Stone Adobe Lime/Cement Balkh 56.4 26.3 12.8 4.0 0.4 Mazar-E-Sharif 18.3 44.0 28.4 8.6 0.7 Nahr-e-Shahi 37.5 33.4 24.5 4.3 0.3 Dehdadi 59.9 28.4 5.7 5.8 0.2 Char Kent 98.6 1.1 0.0 0.2 0.0 Marmul 99.9 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 Balkh 81.1 15.7 1.9 1.2 0.1 Sholgara 88.3 10.8 0.5 0.4 0.1 Chimtal 86.6 12.4 0.4 0.4 0.1 Dawlat Abad 83.2 15.3 0.4 0.5 0.5 Khulm 47.9 49.8 1.1 1.1 0.1 Char Bolak 85.1 14.1 0.2 0.5 0.0 Shortepa 96.6 2.8 0.3 0.3 0.0 Kaldar 62.9 16.1 12.5 5.1 3.4 Kishendeh 96.6 2.8 0.1 0.3 0.2 Zari 99.6 0.2 0.0 0.2 0.1

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18.3 Construction Materials of the Floor In Balkh Province, 86.0 percent of the households lived in houses with floors made of earth/sand and 10.9 percent in houses with floors made of cement while only 1.5 percent in houses with floors made of wood planks (Table 33).

At the district level, majority of the households lived in housing units with floors made of earth/sand, ranging from 49.7 percent in Kaldar to 99.7 percent in Shortepa. A higher proportion of households living in houses with floors made of cement was observed in Kaldar and Mazar-E-Sharif (26.5 percent and 26.1 percent, respectively). Table 33. Percentage Distribution of Households by Main Construction Materials of the Floor of the Housing Units and District: Balkh, December 2015

Province/District Earth/Sand Cement Wood Planks Others

Balkh 86.0 10.9 1.5 1.7 Mazar-E-Sharif 70.2 26.1 1.5 2.1 Nahr-e-Shahi 87.2 10.7 0.9 1.2 Dehdadi 89.3 8.6 0.6 1.6 Char Kent 89.1 0.0 10.8 0.1 Marmul 99.5 0.4 0.1 0.0 Balkh 94.5 2.3 1.0 2.2 Sholgara 98.9 0.5 0.1 0.5 Chimtal 98.4 0.4 1.0 0.3 Dawlat Abad 98.4 0.5 0.3 0.8 Khulm 93.4 0.9 0.3 5.4 Char Bolak 99.4 0.3 0.3 0.0 Shortepa 99.7 0.3 0.1 0.0 Kaldar 49.7 26.5 22.7 1.1 Kishendeh 95.9 0.2 1.0 2.9 Zari 95.8 0.2 0.2 3.7

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18.4 Ownership or Tenure of the Housing Unit Table 34 shows that 79.8 percent of the households in Balkh Province reported that they owned their houses, 11.7 percent resided in rented houses and 7.1 percent stayed in free lodging arrangement.

At the district level, Shortepa had the highest proportion of households who reported owning their housing units (99.7 percent) while Mazar-E-Sharif had the lowest proportion (66.5 percent). About one fourth of the households (24.5 percent) in Mazar-E-Sharif were staying in rented houses while one in five households (19.2 percent) in Marmul were residing in houses with free lodging arrangement. Table 34. Proportion of Households by Tenure Status of Housing Units and District:Balkh, December 2015

Pledged Province/District Owned Rented Free Lodging (Gerawee) Balkh 79.8 11.7 7.1 1.4 Mazar-E-Sharif 66.5 24.5 5.8 3.2 Nahr-e-Shahi 72.2 20.5 5.7 1.6 Dehdadi 74.7 10.5 13.7 1.1 Char Kent 88.0 0.4 11.4 0.2 Marmul 80.6 0.2 19.2 0.0 Balkh 88.5 4.4 6.6 0.5 Sholgara 91.2 1.3 7.2 0.3 Chimtal 92.3 0.3 7.2 0.3 Dawlat Abad 93.3 0.6 6.1 0.0 Khulm 86.4 1.4 11.6 0.6 Char Bolak 93.5 0.2 6.0 0.2 Shortepa 99.7 0.2 0.2 0.0 Kaldar 74.3 8.0 17.5 0.3 Kishendeh 96.1 0.4 3.4 0.1 Zari 92.7 0.5 6.7 0.2

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18.5 Type of Toilet Facility As per the UNICEF definition, only 48.2 percent of the households in Balkh Province 3 reported that they have an improved sanitation facility . Table 35 shows that 34.7 percent of the households used flush or pour flush to piped sewer system, septic tank, or to pit; 12.8 percent used ventilated improved pit latrine or pit latrine with slab; and 0.7 percent used composting pit.

Figure 41 shows that nine in ten households in Mazar- E-Sharif (91.7 percent) had access to improved TEXT BOX 14: PROPORTION OF HOUSEHOLDS USING sanitation facility while only one in five households in IMPROVED SANITATION Shortepa and Kishendeh (2.8 percent and 1.7 percent, FACILITY respectively). Balkh (2015)* 48.2 Takhar (2015)* 25.4 In seven districts in the province, at least 80 percent of Samangan (2015)* 10.4 households were using elevated toiled facilities in which Kapisa (2014)* 1.9 the dirt is deposited on the ground and collected at Parwan (2014)* 6.8 certain time intervals. These are Marmul (97.9 percent), Kabul (2013)* 43.8 Kishendeh (93 percent), Shortepa (87.4 percent), Zari Ghor (2012)* 2.3 (86.8 percent), Khulm (84.2 percent), Chimtal (80.9 Daykundi (2012)* 1.4 percent) and Char Kent (80.2 percent). Bamiyan (2011)* 12.7 Afghanistan** 6.0

The comparison on the proportion of households using Sources: * SDES improved sanitation facility among SDES provinces is **ALCS 2013-2014 shown in Text Box 14. Balkh had the highest proportion of households using improved sanitation facility. Figure 41. Proportion of Households With an Improved Sanitation Facility by District: Balkh, December 2015 100.0 91.7 90.0

80.0 68.3 70.0

60.0 48.1 50.0 43.1 40.0 31.5 30.0 26.1 23.0 19.4 20.0 14.9 14.7 13.7 10.8 9.5 10.0 2.8 1.7 0.6 0.0

3 An improved toilet facility includes: flush to piped sewer system, flush to septic tank, flush to pit latrine, 84 ventilated improved pit latrine, pit latrine with slab and composting pit. Balkh 2.1 0.3 0.6 0.4 2.7 1.5 1.7 5.0 4.0 3.4 0.9 4.7 9.5 4.3 1.8 13.2 Others 0.6 0.4 0.2 1.1 0.7 0.0 0.5 1.2 0.3 1.0 1.1 0.6 0.1 0.3 0.2 1.0 Place Flush Flush Somewhere Somewhere Else/Unknown Else/Unknown 2.1 0.8 1.5 1.9 2.0 1.7 0.0 2.4 2.2 4.1 5.4 0.1 3.7 0.2 1.5 0.8 Slab Without Without Pit Latrine Pit Latrine Unimproved Sanitation Facility 6.0 47.3 93.0 29.0 53.4 80.2 97.9 75.9 68.6 80.9 64.1 84.2 76.2 87.4 53.5 86.8 Toilet Elevated Elevated 8.3 51.9 98.3 31.7 56.9 85.3 99.4 80.5 77.0 89.2 73.9 86.3 85.1 97.2 68.5 90.5 Total Pit 0.5 0.1 0.4 0.2 0.5 5.4 0.0 0.2 0.3 1.0 1.0 0.7 1.2 0.2 0.6 0.0 Composting Composting 1.4 5.1 0.0 6.2 8.2 9.3 9.3 2.4 7.7 5.6 12.8 19.0 15.6 11.0 14.9 16.4 Pit/Pit Pit/Pit latrine latrine with Slab Improved Improved Ventilated Ventilated Pit 0.2 4.2 0.6 7.9 1.7 8.8 3.7 4.4 0.2 3.9 34.7 72.4 52.5 31.7 13.0 23.2 Improved Sanitation Facility Septic Tank/ Piped Sewer/ Flush/Pour to Flush/Pour to 1.7 0.6 2.8 9.5 48.1 91.7 68.3 43.1 14.7 19.4 23.0 10.8 26.1 13.7 14.9 31.5 Total Province/District Balkh Kishendeh Mazar-E-Sharif Nahr-e-Shahi Dehdadi Kent Char Marmul Balkh Sholgara Chimtal Dawlat Abad Khulm Bolak Char Shortepa Kaldar Zari Table 35. Percentage Distribution of Households by Type of Toilet Facility and of Households by Type Toilet Facility and Distribution Table 35. Percentage 2015 December District: Balkh,

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18.6 Number of Rooms in the Dwelling Units at the Disposal of the Household and Number of Rooms for Sleeping Table 36 shows the distribution of households in Balkh Province by the number of rooms in their dwelling units and by household size. The data indicate whether residents are living in crowded conditions which may have a negative impact on physical and mental health of persons living in it, and on the development of children.

Rooms considered ‘dwelling rooms’ include bedrooms, dining rooms, sitting rooms, study rooms and servants’ rooms but excluding kitchens and toilets.

About 25.4 percent of households with 10 or more members were living in dwelling units that have six or more rooms. Moreover, about 23.4 percent of households with 10 or more members were living in housing units with three rooms and 231. percent in dwelling units with four rooms. . Table 36 Percentage Distribution of Households by Number of Dwelling

Rooms at Their Disposal and Household Size: Balkh, December 2015

Number of Rooms at the Disposal of the Households Household Size One Two Three Four Five Six or more rooms

Total 13.6 33.9 23.7 14.3 5.8 8.6 1 Person 54.7 30.0 8.3 3.7 1.0 2.3 2 Persons 37.6 41.3 12.4 4.9 2.0 1.8 3 Persons 28.8 42.0 17.5 6.8 2.4 2.5 4 Persons 22.1 42.8 20.1 9.0 2.8 3.1 5 Persons 16.2 40.5 23.9 10.8 4.2 4.4 6 Persons 11.4 38.6 26.2 13.4 4.7 5.8 7 Persons 8.1 34.7 28.3 16.1 5.6 7.2 8 Persons 5.3 31.7 28.7 18.3 6.9 9.1 9 Persons 3.2 26.2 28.9 21.3 8.8 11.6 10 Persons or more 1.2 14.3 23.4 23.1 12.5 25.4

About 13.6 percent of households were living in dwelling units that have only one room and 33.9 percent in two rooms.

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Dawlat Abad (33 percent), Char Bolak (32.4 percent) and Chimtal (24 percent) had the largest proportion of households in housing units with five or more rooms (Table 37). In other districts, this percentage ranged from 4.5 percent in Kishendeh to 21.5 percent in Balkh. In all districts, the proportion of households that lived in 2-4 room housing units ranged from 62 percent in Dawlat Abad to 82.4 percent in Kaldar. Table 37. Percentage Distribution of Households by Number of Dwelling Rooms at their Disposal and District: Balkh, December 2015

Number of Rooms at the Disposal of the Households Province/ Six or more District One Two Three Four Five rooms Balkh 13.6 33.9 23.7 14.3 5.8 8.6 Mazar-E- 15.0 33.8 24.6 14.5 5.2 6.9 Sharif Nahr-E-Shahi 19.7 40.5 21.4 10.6 3.6 4.2 Dehdadi 11.8 37.3 24.6 14.7 5.1 6.5 Char Kent 17.9 35.0 24.0 12.6 5.1 5.4 Marmul 13.2 33.2 24.6 17.4 4.3 7.4 Balkh 8.9 29.2 23.8 16.6 7.9 13.6 Sholgara 10.9 33.5 26.3 16.3 5.4 7.6 Chimtal 3.9 25.3 28.2 18.6 9.9 14.1 Dawlat Abad 5.0 21.7 21.5 18.8 9.8 23.2 Khulm 15.8 38.1 22.3 12.9 5.2 5.7 Char Bolak 4.5 22.9 22.5 17.7 11.5 20.9 Shortepa 2.4 28.7 34.3 18.2 8.0 8.4 Kaldar 7.5 38.5 30.2 13.6 5.3 4.7 Kishendeh 27.9 43.9 16.4 7.3 2.4 2.1 Zari 24.9 44.0 19.1 7.4 2.3 2.3

Table 38 shows the distribution of households in Balkh Province by number of rooms in their dwelling used for sleeping and by household size. This data provides a more refined indicator of the crowding in housing units, and also reflects the degree of privacy available. In Balkh Province, 38.2 percent of households, regardless of the number of household members, had one room available for sleeping while 40.0 percent had two rooms.

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Table 38. Percentage Distribution of Households by Number of Rooms Used for Sleeping and Household Size: Balkh, December 2015

Number of Rooms Used for Sleeping Household size Six or One Two Three Four Five more Total 38.0 40.1 14.3 5.0 1.5 1.2 1 Person 95.9 3.0 0.3 0.6 0.0 0.1 2 Persons 88.2 10.1 1.3 0.3 0.1 0.1 3 Persons 73.0 23.6 2.6 0.6 0.1 0.1 4 Persons 61.1 33.0 4.6 1.0 0.2 0.1 5 Persons 48.7 42.2 7.3 1.4 0.4 0.1 6 Persons 36.9 49.0 10.9 2.5 0.4 0.3 7 Persons 26.9 53.0 15.5 3.5 0.7 0.4 8 Persons 18.3 54.9 19.9 5.3 1.1 0.4 9 Persons 11.7 51.3 26.5 7.6 2.0 0.9 10 Persons or more 3.9 32.6 32.4 18.3 6.6 6.3

Around 65 percent of households with ten or more members were living in dwelling units that have 2-3 rooms for sleeping. Another 51.3 percent of households with nine household members were living in dwelling units that have two bedrooms and 26.5 percent in dwelling units that have three bedrooms. Only 12.9 percent of households with ten or more members were living in dwelling units that have five or more rooms used for sleeping.

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19. APPENDICES 19.1 Definition of Terms Adult Literacy Rate. Percentage of persons aged 15 and over who can read and write a simple message with understanding.

Dependency Ratio. The ratio of the number of persons aged 0–14 and 65 and over to the number of persons in the most productive ages of 15–64, expressed as a percentage.

Functional Difficulty. A person with difficulty in functioning may have activity limitations, which may range from a slight to a severe deviation in terms of quality or quantity in executing an activity in a manner or to the extent that is expected of people without the health condition. In general, functional difficulties experienced by people may be due to their health condition (such as disease or illness), other health problem (such as a short or long-lasting injury), a mental or emotional problem or a problem with alcohol or drug use. A health condition may also include other circumstances, such as pregnancy, aging, stress or congenital anomaly. Difficulty is usually manifested when a person is doing an activity with increased effort, discomfort or pain, slowness or changes in the way the activity is typically done.

Improved Drinking-Water Source. One that, by nature of its construction or through active intervention, is protected from outside contamination, in particular from contamination from faecal matter. It includes piped water to the dwelling, compound or neighbour; tube well borehole, protected well; and protected spring.

Improved Sanitation Facility. For SDG monitoring, one that hygienically separates human excreta from human contact. It includes flush or pour flush to sewer system, septic tank, or to pit; ventilated improved pit latrine or pit latrine with slab; and composting toilet.

Net School Attendance Rate. Ratio of children of official school age who attended school in the appropriate class, to the total population of official school age (primary: 7–12 year age group attends classes 1–6; secondary: 13–15 year age group attends classes 7–9; high school: 16–18 year age group attends classes 10–12; and vocation/ higher education: 19–24 year age group attends class 13 and above).

Sex Ratio. The ratio of males to females in a population expressed as the number of males per 100 females.

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19.2 Quality of Age Data The tendency of surveyors or respondents to report certain ages at the expense of others is called age heaping, age preference or digit preference. Digit preference is the preference for particular ages ending in certain digits. Preference for 0 and 5 is the most widespread.

Figure A1 shows single-year age data and demonstrates the preference for ages ending in 0 and 5. Possible errors in single-year age data are net under-enumeration of selected population groups and misreporting or mis-assignment of age. Infants or children aged 0 are under-reported, often because parents tend not to think of them as members of the household. The very small number of infants and children who are 1 year of age compared to the number of children aged 2–4 years suggests an appreciable under-coverage of such children in the survey. Figure A1. Population in Single Year of Age by Sex: Balkh, December 2015 95 90 85 80 Male Female 75 70 65 60 55 50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 Under 1 35,000 25,000 15,000 5,000 5,000 15,000 25,000 35,000

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Table A1. Indexes of Age Preference by District: Balkh, December 2015

Myer’s Blended Index Province/District Whipple’s Index

Balkh 19.9 221.8 Mazar-E-Sharif 18.6 213.9 Nahr-E-Shahi 20.3 225.9 Dehdadi 22.1 241.7 Char Kent 26.5 261.5 Marmul 18.0 203.3 Balkh 19.5 218.3 Sholgara 24.2 248.0 Chimtal 21.1 227.2 Dawlat Abad 18.2 203.4 Khulm 20.0 210.0 Char Bolak 21.4 228.8 Shortepa 8.6 136.5 Kaldar 15.1 183.3 Kishendeh 23.7 243.2 Zari 26.6 266.0

Two indexes of age preference, the Myer’s Blended Index and Whipple’s Index, are presented in Table A1. Myer’s Blended Index measures preference for any terminal digit and ranges theoretically from 0, representing no heaping or preference for any terminal digit, to 90, which would result if all ages that have been reported in a survey end in a single digit. Whipple’s Index measures heaping on ages with terminal digits 0 and 5. It ranges from 100, indicating no preference for terminal digits 0 or 5, to 500, indicating that only ages ending in 0 and 5 were reported.

For Balkh Province, the Myer’s Blended Index is 19.9 while the Whipple’s Index is 221.8. These are lower than the corresponding figures computed for Afghanistan which were 21.8 and 231, respectively (Text Box A1). At the district level, Myer’s Index ranges from 8.6 for Shortepa to 26.6 for Zari, while Whipple’s Index ranges from 136.5 for Shortepa to 266 for Zari. These suggest that age heaping is most serious in Zari while relatively less serious in Shortepa.

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Presenting age data in 5-year age groups tends to minimize some of the irregularities TEXT BOX A1: AGE PREFERENCE INDEXES Myer’s Blended Whipple’s present in single-year-age data, including Index Index errors brought about by age heaping or digit Balkh (2015)* 19.9 221.8 preference. Omission of some population Takhar (2015)* 23.9 247.8 groups, say, young children, particularly Samangan (2015)* 22.4 236.5 infants, the aged, and mobile young adults, Kapisa (2014)* 21.3 231.2 particularly those working away from home, Parwan (2014)* 22.8 237.1 can still affect the quality of grouped age Kabul (2013)* 21.4 230.2 data. Ghor (2012)* 53.1 388.1 Daykundi (2012)* 23.8 243.6 A popular measure of the quality of grouped Bamiyan (2011)* 27.8 282.2 age-sex data is the UN age-sex accuracy Afghanistan** 21.8 231.0 index. Survey/census age-sex data are Sources: * SDES described as accurate if the index is under **ALCS 2013-2014 20. The index should be interpreted with caution as it does not take into account real irregularities in age distribution due to migration and war mortality, for instance, which may have affected the value for Balkh Province. The UN age-sex accuracy index for the province is 43.5 which is lower than the indexes in Takhar, Samangan, Kabul, Ghor, Daykundi and Bamiyan. At the district level, the index varies from 43.6 for Nahr-E-Shahi to 110.7 for Shortepa. Thus, caution should be used when using the different indicators cross-tabulated with age. This suggests that age and sex data reporting in Balkh needs improvement, particularly in Shortepa.

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Table A2. Age-Sex Accuracy Index by District: Balkh, December 2015

Province/District Index (%) Balkh 43.5 Mazar-E-Sharif 44.0 Nahr-E-Shahi 43.6 Dehdadi 48.0 Charkent 88.2 Marmul 83.6 Balkh 52.8 Sholgara 55.3 Chimtal 87.7 Dawlat Abad 56.0 Khulm 55.5 Char Bolak 43.9 Shortepa 110.7 Kaldar 60.5 Kishendeh 84.1 Zari 95.9

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Central Statistics Organization (2016). Takhar Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey: Final Report. CSO, Kabul, Afghanistan

Central Statistics Organization (2016). Samangan Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey: Final Report. CSO, Kabul, Afghanistan

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Central Statistics Organization (2014). Kabul Province Socio-Demographic and Economic Survey: Final Report. CSO, Kabul, Afghanistan.

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Ministry of Economy (2012). The Millennium Development Goals 2012, Islamic http://www. Republic of Afghanistan MDG Report 2012. Retrieved from af.undp.org/content/dam/afghanistan/docs/MDGs/Afghanistan%20 MDGs%202012%20Report.pdf

Moultrie TA, RE Dorrington, AG Hill, K Hill, IM Timæus and B Zaba (eds.) (2013). Tools for Demographic Estimation. Paris: International Union for the http://demographicestimation. Scientific Study of Population. Retrieved from iussp.org/content/evaluation-data-recent-fertility-censuses

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