Over 34,000 foreigners arrive, leave country last year

KABUL (Pajhwok): About 34,411 foreign nationals arrived and left the country through land and airports last year, the National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA) said on Sunday.

In a statement, NSIA wrote it registered 18,846 foreigners, including 598 female, entering and 15,565 others including 382 females leaving the country in 1403 solar year.

During this period, 18,329 people entered the country through land ports and 454 others by airports, about 721 of them visited ancient and historical sites and the rest for work, the report added.

According to the statement, based on recorded data, the largest number of foreigners (10,641), most of whom are drivers, entered for work through Nimroz Port, and 4,345 entered via Torkham Port, including 1,325 tourists.

About 3,058 more people entered through Herat ports and airport, and the remaining foreigners entered via Hairatan Port and Balkh Airport, Aqina Port in Faryab and Ishkashm Port in Badakhshan, and Kabul and Kandahar Airports.

NSIA did not reveal the identities of the foreign nationals.

hz/ma