Afghanistan's government plans to plant five million trees by 2030 to restore forest cover lost during decades of conflict [3].
This initiative represents a critical effort to stabilize the country's ecology. By reversing wartime deforestation, the government seeks to mitigate environmental degradation and protect the land from further erosion.
Mohammad Younus, the Minister of Agriculture, said the target is designed to restore the environment after years of war [3]. The program is supported by the National Statistics and Information Authority, which monitors the progress of the national reforestation efforts.
Recent activity has centered in northeastern Afghanistan, specifically in Char Bagh village. Residents there have already begun implementing the strategy on a local scale. Ahmad Shah, a resident of Char Bagh, said the community planted over 10,000 poplar saplings in the last year [4].
Despite these local successes, the national landscape remains sparsely forested. A spokesperson for the National Statistics and Information Authority said that only 2.5 percent of the country was forested in 2025 [2]. This low figure highlights the scale of the challenge facing the Ministry of Agriculture as it attempts to scale up planting operations.
There are some signs of improvement in the long-term data. The spokesperson also said that forest cover has risen by 35 percent since 2011 [1]. This increase suggests that previous efforts and natural regrowth are beginning to take hold, though the overall percentage of forested land remains low.
The government is prioritizing species like poplars and pistachios to provide both environmental benefits and potential economic value to rural communities. These trees are being planted across various regions to ensure a diversified ecological recovery.
“Our goal is to plant five million trees by 2030 to restore the environment after years of war.”
The ambitious target of five million trees underscores a shift toward environmental recovery as a state priority. While a 35 percent increase in cover since 2011 shows positive momentum, the fact that only 2.5 percent of the country was forested as of 2025 indicates that Afghanistan is starting from a severe deficit. Success will depend on the government's ability to maintain sapling survival rates in a region prone to drought and political instability.
