Jowzjan

Jowzjan demonstrates how resource extraction can transform peripheral regions into strategic assets. The Sheberghan gas fields, discovered in the late 1960s, contain approximately 16.2 trillion cubic feet of natural gas—Afghanistan's principal energy reserves. After decades of underexploitation, October 2024 brought a $1 billion contract with Uzbek company Eriell KAM for the Toti-Maidan field, with operations commencing in September 2025. The field spans 7,000 square kilometers and holds an estimated 3 trillion cubic meters of natural gas.

The province's ethnic composition reflects its Central Asian orientation. Unlike Pashtun-dominated southern Afghanistan, Jowzjan's population of approximately 613,000 is primarily Uzbek (39.5%) and Turkmen (28.7%), with smaller Pashto (17.2%) and Dari (12.1%) speaking communities. This demographic pattern connects the province culturally and economically to Uzbekistan across the northern border. The July 2025 framework agreement between Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan for the Trans-Afghan Railway—linking Termez to Pakistan's Kharlachi via Afghanistan—positions Jowzjan as a critical transit node.

Modern energy infrastructure has already materialized. The Bayat Power plant in Sheberghan, operational since November 2019, was Afghanistan's first modern gas-fired power plant in four decades. By 2024 it had generated over 1 billion kWh, reducing import dependence. The Taliban's post-2021 administration has prioritized consolidation—211 former police officers dismissed in July 2025—while simultaneously courting foreign investment. The contrast between political purges and economic pragmatism defines Jowzjan's current trajectory: ideology shapes governance, but gas reserves attract capital that no ideology can replace.