Inside Afghanistan's Panjshir Valley: How Emerald Mining Draws Global Buyers Amid Basic Tools and Hardship

Panjshir, Afghanistan — At a packed hall in the offices of the Panjshir provincial government, a bustling auction is under way with brisk bidding. Buyers hailing from Kabul and overseas closely examine small piles of roughly cut green stones, utilizing phone flashlights to assess their quality. Competition for the finest gems is fierce.

“Panjshir emeralds have many buyers around the world because of their very high quality,” gem merchant Ghulam Mustafa Habibi stated to Al Jazeera. “This is why their price is higher compared with other emeralds around the world.”

By the conclusion of the event, nearly 3,000 carats of precious stones were successfully sold, marking the 23rd sale of its kind this year. The total value of emeralds sold in Afghanistan thus far is estimated at nearly 400m Afghanis ($6.12m), demonstrating a steep increase compared to the previous year.

For a nation struggling with the impacts of war and international sanctions, the trade in precious minerals serves as a vital economic resource, particularly within this remote corner of northeastern Afghanistan.

“Thankfully, more than 15,000 people are currently employed in Panjshir’s mining sector,” explained Muhammad Aman Rezaii, a mining official tasked with overseeing numerous small artisanal operations across the Panjshir valley.

Along the steep hillsides of the valley, miners spend hours toiling underground to secure a livelihood. Amidst a barren and rocky landscape offering few alternatives, these precious stones remain a lifeline.

“There are hardly any companies or manufacturing factories here. The main source of employment is the mining sector,” noted Rezaii. He further mentioned that authorities have identified more than 2,000 additional mining sites with development potential.

Following their rise to power in 2021, the Taliban reported signing agreements with dozens of investors—predominantly from China, Russia, and Iran—to extract gemstones and other valuable minerals. Data from the World Bank indicates that state revenues climbed 22 percent year-on-year across April and May, supported significantly by auctions of mines, oil, and precious minerals.

Despite this activity, Afghanistan’s gemstone mining sector continues to face shortages in international investment and technical expertise.

“There have been various proposals to establish an international market for Afghanistan’s precious minerals, particularly in Kabul,” Hafiz Muhammad Agha Hakim, the Governor of Panjshir province, informed Al Jazeera. “Processing machinery could be brought in so that these minerals can be processed and standardised here before being exported to markets around the world. At the moment, there is no standardised centre or proper processing facility.”

Deep inside the dusty confines of his workplace in near-total darkness, a miner named Mahdi wields a crowbar while a nearby colleague strikes the surface with a hammer. He expressed frustration regarding their shortage of modern equipment.

“There are many challenges because we don’t have advanced equipment,” Mahdi shared during a brief break from digging. “We work only with basic tools such as shovels, pickaxes, drills and similar equipment.”

Rezaii emphasized that workers require proper gear to facilitate safer and easier extraction while allowing minerals to be harvested professionally. “This would benefit the people of Afghanistan and particularly the miners,” he said. “The area is vulnerable to landslides, avalanches, flooding and falling rocks. People here are working under extremely difficult and demanding conditions.”