Why is it difficult to estimate the population of Afghanistan’s ethnic groups accurately?

Accurately estimating the population of Afghanistan’s ethnic groups is difficult primarily because the country has not conducted a national census since a partial count in 1979.1

In the decades since, the nation has experienced prolonged periods of war and significant population dislocation, which have made a precise ethnic count impossible to achieve. Consequently, current figures regarding the distribution of groups such as Pashtuns, Tajiks, Hazara, and Uzbeks are considered only rough approximations. Furthermore, the disruption of traditional migratory patterns among nomadic groups due to civil conflict has further complicated efforts to track demographic shifts across the country.12