Asia

Area: 803,940 sq km (499,545 sq miles)
Capital City: Islamabad
Population: 177 million
Population below poverty line: 43 million
People: Punjabi 48%, Sindhi 12%, Siraiki (a Punjabi variant) 10%, Pashtu 8%, Urdu (official) 8%, Balochi 3%, Hindko 2%, Brahui 1%, English (official; lingua franca of Pakistani elite and most government ministries), Burushaski, and other 8%Official languages: English and Urdu
Languages spoken: Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashtun, Urdu, Balochi, English and many other local languages
Religions: Islam (97%), Hinduism, Christianity and others (3%)
 

For the FCO Pakistan country profile click here.  For information on DFID involvement in Yemen click here.

Area: 251,740 square miles (652,000 sq km)
Population: estimated to be 27.1 million (UN) with an estimated total of two million refugees in Pakistan and 800,000 in Iran (UNHCR)
Capital city: Kabul, population estimated to be 4 million (Deputy Mayor of Kabul December 2002). Other main cities are Herat, Jalalabad, Kandahar and Mazar-e Sharif.
People: The population comprises numerous ethnic groups, the major ones being Pashtuns, Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks, Chahar Aimaks and Turkmen.
Language: Dari (related to Farsi) and Pashto
Religion: approximately 99% Islam -around 80% of whom are Sunni Muslim
 

For the FCO Afghanistan country profile click here.  For information on DFID involvement in Afghanistan click here.

Area: Approximately 147,000 sq km, stretching 800km from east to west and from 90 to 230km north to south.
Population: An estimated 28.9 million (CIA World Factbook est. 2010). Annual rate of growth of 2.5%. The next census is due in 2011.
Capital city: Kathmandu. Population of about 990,000 in the city itself.
Peoples: Indigenous peoples include Gurung, Limbu, Newar, Rai, Sherpa, Tamang and Tharu with diverse smaller groups. Major caste groups are the Brahmins and Chhetris.
Language(s): Nepali 58% (official language), Newari 3%, mainly in Kathmandu. Tibeto- Burman languages (20%) mainly in the hill areas, and Indian-related languages (20%) mainly in the Terai areas bordering India. Nepal has over 30 Languages and over a hundred dialects.
Religion(s): Officially 90% Hindu, 8% Buddhist and 4% Muslim – but accurate figures are not available. Estimates suggest that there are some 400,000 Christians in the country.

For the FCO Nepal country profile click here.  For information on DFID involvement in Nepal click here.