Local officials in Panjshir province report that 30% of the population is engaged and employed, directly or indirectly, in the process of extraction of emeralds.
Mohammad Qasim Amiri, the head of the province’s Mines and Petroleum Directorate, stated that 20% of the residents in Hisa Awal district alone are involved in emerald mining activities.
He added that residents from other districts of Panjshir, as well as from neighboring provinces, are also actively participating in this process.
According to the statement of Amiri, around 600 licenses have so far been issued for the extraction of precious and semi-precious stones.
