Government

The executive branch of the Afghan government consists of a powerful and popularly elected President and two Vice Presidents. A National Assembly consisting of two Houses, the House of People (Wolesi Jirga) with 249 seats, and the House of Elders (Meshrano Jirga) with 102 seats, forms the Legislative Branch. There is an independent Judiciary branch consisting of the Supreme Court (Stera Mahkama), High Courts and Appeal Courts. The President appoints the nine members of the Supreme Court with the approval of the Wolesi Jirga.


The Cabinet
 
The present cabinet of Afghanistan consists of 16 ministers who were appointed by President Karzai and introduced to the House of People on December
19, 2009.

Vice Presidents

First Vice President: H.E. Mohammad Qasim FAHIM
Second Vice President: H.E. Mohammad Karim Khalili

The following ministers were approved by the Afghan parliament:
Minister of Foreign Affairs: Dr. Zalmai Rassoul
Minister of National Defense: General Abdul Rahim Wardak
Minister of Interior:  General Bismillah Mohammadi  
Minister of Finance: Dr. Omar Kakhilwal
Minister of Justice: Habibullah Ghaleb
Minister of Education: Ghulam Farooq Wardak
Minister of Economy and Manpower: Abdul Hadi Arghandiwal
Minister of Rural Rehabilitation and Development:         Jarullah Mansoori
Minister of Work and Social Affairs, Martyrs & Disabled: Amena Afzali
Minister of Counter Narcotics: Zarar Ahmad Moqbel
Minister for Information, Culture and Tourism: Sayed Makhdum Rahin
Minister of Mines: Wahidullah Shahrani
Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock: Muhammad Asif Rahimi
Minister of Haj and Islamic Affairs: Dr. Mohammad Yousuf Neyazi                         
Minister of Public Works: Abdul Qudous Hamidi                                                             
Minister of Tribal and Frontiers Affairs:  Assadullah khaled                                    
Minister of Commerce and Industry:  Dr. Anwarullaq Ahadi                                           
Minister of Refugees Affairs:  Jamaheer Anwari   

Acting Ministers
Minister of Higher Education: Sarwar Danesh
Minister of Public Health: Dr. Suraya Dalil
Minister of Urban Development: Sultan Hussain
Minister of Commerce and Industry: Ghulam Mohammad Yalaqi
Minister of Women's Affairs: Mrs. Hassan Bano Ghazanfar
Minister for Transport and Civil Aviation: Daood ALI Najafe                                             
Minister of Energy and Water: Mohammad Ismael Khan                                                
Minister of Telecommunication and Information Technology: Amirzai Sangin 

Independent Directorates
Government directorates are established to function within the executive branch of the government. Directorates can propose acts and regulations for better management of their activities. The head of the departments are appointed by the President and approved by the NA.

List of Current Directorates

• Department of National Security
• Department of Central Bank
• Department of Kabul Mayor
• Department of Red Cross
• Department of Academy of Sciences
• Department of Olympics
• Department of Fighting Disasters
• Department of Control and Audit
• Department of Anti Corruption
• Department of Environment Protection
• Department of Cartography
  

Government Commissions
The Government of Afghanistan has established a number of Commissions in various fields which are considered to be vital for Afghanistan's overall development. They include:

• Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission
  
• Judicial Reform Commission
• Constitutional Commission
• Anti-Corruption Commission
  
  

Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC)
The Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) was established by Presidential Decree on June 6, 2002. The establishment of the AIHRC was contemplated in the Bonn Agreement of December 2001. The AIHRC is responsible for monitoring human rights, investigating violations of human rights, and strengthening respect for and enforcement of human rights among domestic institutions.

Judicial Reform Commission
The Judicial Reform Commission was also established under the terms of the Bonn Agreement, and exists to lead the justice and rule of law reform agenda. Two and a half decades of war had left Afghanistan's judicial system in disarray - if not complete collapse. The Commission has worked over the last three years to strengthen Afghanistan's permanent judicial institutions (Supreme Court, Ministry of Justice, and the Attorney General's Office), as well as local judicial processes.

Constitutional Commission
The Constitutional Commission was established as Afghanistan prepared to revise its Constitution following the Emergency Loya Jirga. The Commission developed, after extensive consultations with Afghans from all walks of life and after conducting detailed studies of constitutions from across the globe, a draft Constitution which served as the basis for the debate and agreement which arose out of the Constitutional Loya Jirga in December 2003 and January 2004. The Constitutional Commission, having completed its work, is no longer in operation. To read a copy of the Constitution which was ratified by President Hamid Karzai on January 26, 2004 please click here.

Anti-Corruption Commission
To promote an ethos of meritocracy throughout the government bureaucracy and to reduce corruption, nepotism, and sever inefficiencies, President Karzai established an Anti-Corruption Commission in June of 2003. This Commission is charged with developing strategies to eliminate corruption and to promote a talented, competent and committed civil service throughout the Afghan Government.

For more information about the current Afghan Cabinet please visit President's Office Website: http://www.president.gov.af/

For the list of Afghan Diplomatic Missions please visit the Ministry of Foreign Affairs