Prime Minister of Afghanistan

Prime Minister of Afghanistan
Appointer	King (1927–1973) President (1978–2001)
Precursor	None
Formation	25 October 1927 1 May 1978
First holder	Sardar Shir Ahmad
Final holder	Abdul Ghafoor Ravan Farhâdi
Abolished	17 July 1973 22 December 2001
Succession	President

The Prime Minister of Afghanistan is a currently defunct post in the Afghan Government.

The position was created in 1927, and was appointed by the King, mostly as an advisor, until the end of the monarchy in 1973. During the 1980s, the position was the head of government.

History of the office

Kingdom

Main article: Kingdom of Afghanistan

The Chairman of the Council of Ministers was not headed by the Prime Minister, but the King. Only during his absence was the Premier the acting Chairman of the Council.

Until 1963, King Mohammed Zahir Shah appointed his relatives as prime ministers. King Zahir Shah also had the power to dismiss or transfer the Prime Minister.

This was changed, stating that the Head of the Afghan Government was the Prime Minister, and that the government consisted of its ministers. It was the first time that King Zahir Shah did not play an important role in the government, leaving it to an elected authority. However, it also stated that they cannot engage in any other profession during their tenure of office.

The 1964 Constitution also granted the Prime Minister the power to summon the Electoral College in case of the death of the King. The Prime Minister only answered to the Wolesi Jirga about the General Policy of the government, and individually for their prescribed duties.

Democratic Republic

Main article: Democratic Republic of Afghanistan

In April 1978, Mohammed Daoud Khan was killed during a coup that started the Saur Revolution. The People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) revived the office of Prime Minister that year, and it remained throughout the 1980s.

The President was in charge of the appointment of the Prime Minister, who in turn appointed the Council of Ministers. The Council's stated purpose was to formulate and implement domestic and foreign policies, to formulate economic development plans and state budgets, and to ensure public order.

Under the 1987 Constitution, the President was required to appoint the Prime Minister in order to form the Government. The Prime Minister had the power to dissolve the government. Several Afghan presidents during the Democratic Republic era were also appointed as Prime Minister. With the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the Prime Minister was no longer in charge of the government. The General Secretary of the PDPA or the Director of the KHAD exercised greater power.

Also, the 1990 Constitution established that only Afghan-born citizens are eligible to hold the office, something that was not specified in the previous documents.

Islamic Emirate

Main articles: Islamic State of Afghanistan and Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan

After the collapse of Mohammad Najibullah's government, a transitional state was created. Thus, the office of Prime Minister once again played an important role in the history of the nation.

There was constant friction between the President and the Premier during this period. The State had collapsed and there was not an effective central Government from 1992 until 1996. Thus, the position became de facto ceremonial, with little power in what was left of the Government.

The title was abolished when the Taliban forces of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan took over control in 1996. The Deputy Leader of the Taliban was often known as the Prime Minister throughout its rule. With the death of Rabbani in 2001, the Taliban decided not to revive the office.

Until August 1997, the government which the Taliban had ousted, which remained in rebellion until the end of the Taliban in 2001, had a Prime Minister in the government, but the position was abolished.

Heads of government

(Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office)

#		Name		Born-Died	Took office	Left office	Political Party
Kingdom of Afghanistan
	1	Sardar Shir Ahmad		c. 1885–?	25 October 1927	January 1929	Independent
Emirate of Afghanistan
	2	Shir Giyan		Died 1929	January 1929	1 November 1929	Independent
Kingdom of Afghanistan
	3	Mohammad Hashim Khan	File:Sardar-Mohammad-Hashim-Khan.tif	1885–1953	1 November 1929	May 1946	Independent
	4	Shah Mahmud Khan	File:Shah mahmood.tif	1890–1959	May 1946	7 September 1953	Independent
	5	Mohammed Daoud Khan		1909–1978	7 September 1953	10 March 1963	Independent
	6	Mohammad Yusuf		1917–1998	10 March 1963	2 November 1965	Independent
	7	Mohammad Hashim Maiwandwal		1919–1973	2 November 1965	11 October 1967	Independent (until 1966)
							Progressive Democratic Party
	—	Abdullah Yaqta1		1914–2003	11 October 1967	1 November 1967	Independent
	8	Mohammad Nur Ahmad Etemadi		1921–1979	1 November 1967	9 June 1971	Independent
	9	Abdul Zahir		1910–1982	9 June 1971	12 November 1972	Independent
	10	Mohammad Musa Shafiq		1932–1979	12 November 1972	17 July 1973	Independent
Republic of Afghanistan
Post Abolished (17 July 1973 – 27 April 1978)
Democratic Republic of Afghanistan
	11	Nur Muhammad Taraki		1917–1979	1 May 1978	27 March 1979	People's Democratic Party (Khalq faction)
	12	Hafizullah Amin	100px	1929–1979	27 March 1979	27 December 1979	People's Democratic Party (Khalq faction)
	13	Babrak Karmal		1929–1996	27 December 1979	11 June 1981	People's Democratic Party (Parcham faction)
	14	Sultan Ali Keshtmand		1935–	11 June 1981	30 November 1987	People's Democratic Party (Parcham faction)
		Republic of Afghanistan
		Sultan Ali Keshtmand	100px	1935–	30 November 1987	26 May 1988	People's Democratic Party (Parcham faction)
	15	Mohammad Hasan Sharq	100px	1925–	26 May 1988	21 February 1989	Independent
	(14)	Sultan Ali Keshtmand	100px	1935–	21 February 1989	8 May 1990	People's Democratic Party (Parcham faction)
	16	Fazal Haq Khaliqyar	100px	1934–2004	8 May 1990	15 April 1992	People's Democratic Party (Parcham faction) (until 1990)
							Democratic Watan Party
Islamic State of Afghanistan
	17	Abdul Sabur Farid Kohistani		1952–2007	6 July 1992	15 August 1992	Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin
	18	Gulbuddin Hekmatyar	100px	1947–	17 June 1993	28 June 1994	Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin
	—	Arsala Rahmani Daulat2		1937–2012	28 June 1994	1995	Islamic Dawah Organisation
	—	Ahmad Shah Ahmadzai3		1944–	1995	26 June 1996	Islamic Dawah Organisation
	(18)	Gulbuddin Hekmatyar	100px	1947–	26 June 1996	27 September 1996	Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
	19	Mullah Mohammad Rabbani		1956–2001	27 September 1996	13 April 2001	Taliban
	—	Mawlawi Abdul Kabir4		1958/1963–	16 April 2001	13 November 2001	Taliban
Northern Alliance of Afghanistan
	I	Gulbuddin Hekmatyar	100px	1947–	27 September 1996	11 August 1997	Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin (Northern Alliance)
	II	Abdul Rahim Ghafoorzai		1947–1997	11 August 1997	21 August 1997	Northern Alliance
	III	Abdul Ghafoor Ravan Farhâdi		1929–	21 August 1997	13 November 2001	Northern Alliance
Islamic Transitional State of Afghanistan
	20	Abdul Ghafoor Ravan Farhâdi		1929–	13 November 2001	22 December 2001	Northern Alliance
Post Abolished (22 December 2001 – 7 December 2004)
Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Post Abolished (7 December 2004 – Present)

Notes

1. Abdullah Yaqta was prime minister in an acting capacity.
2. Arsala Rahmani was prime minister in an acting capacity.
3. Ahmad Shah Ahmadzai was prime minister in an acting capacity.
4. Mawlawi Abdul Kabir was prime minister in an acting capacity.

See also

• Chief Executive Officer (Afghanistan)
• List of monarchs of Afghanistan
• List of Presidents of Afghanistan
• President of Afghanistan

External links

• Internet Page that has copies of several Afghan Constitutions