Dashti Qala District

Dashti Qala District
District
Location of the district in Takhar Province
Coordinates: 37°8′35″N 69°27′13″E / 37.14306°N 69.45361°E / 37.14306; 69.45361
Country	Afghanistan
Province	Takhār Province
Recognized	January 2004[2]
Government
• Police Commander	Abdul Raouf Hamidi[3]
Area [4]
• Total	270 km2 (100 sq mi)
Elevation	455 m (1,493 ft)
Population  (2020)
• Total	41,659[1]
• Density	220/km2 (600/sq mi)
	Population total is of 2020, and the density is of 2015
Ethnicity [5]
• Uzbek	60%
• Tajik	35%
• Pashtun	5%
Time zone	UTC+4:30 (Afghanistan Standard Time)
Post Code	3759[6]

Dashti Qala District (دشت قلعه) is a district of Takhar Province, Afghanistan. It split from Khwaja Ghar District in June 2005.^[7] This district borders Tajikistan. Ai-Khanoum, probably founded by the Seleucid Empire, is located in this district. In 2018, this district was considered contested between the government and the Taliban.^[8]

Dashti Qala District has an area of 270 square kilometers,^[4] comparatively equivalent to Niue.^[9] The Panj River borders the district, and the Kokcha River crosses Dashti Qala.^[10] The climate of the district is classified as cold, semi-arid steppe on the Köppen–Geiger climate classification system.^[11]

The district is surrounded by Darqad to the northwest, Khwaja Bahauddin to the north, Rustaq to the east, Khwaja Ghar to the south, and Khatlon province (Tajikistan) to the west.^[12] The Panj River forms the border between Khatlon Province and Dashti Qala.^[10]

Dashti Qala has a gender ratio of 103 males for every 100 females, matching the province. Dashti Qala has a young population, with an average age of 15.8 years.^[13] 84.3% of the population have never completed a class (which is 74.2% of males and 95% of females). 44.7% of Dashti Qala's population did not work prior to the United Nations Population Fund survey in 2015. Of that, 44.7%, 90% were unable to work. Dashti Qala has 31.5% of children under age 5. The average household size is 6.9 people.

Wood is the main source of energy for heating and cooking. Most inhabitants use the sun for light.^[13] Dashti Qala receives 95.2% of its water from dug wells. 99.3% of houses are made of wood and dirt. Meanwhile, 24.6% of the households have an improved sanitation facility. About half of the houses have two rooms.

• Districts of Afghanistan
• Takhar Province