The ATO green roads profiles present country-level perspectives on how 35 Asia-Pacific economies are addressing the development and management of sustainable eco-friendly roads. Drawing from diverse datasets and policy documents, the profiles highlight practices and measures that contribute to greener transport infrastructure.

Developed by the Asian Transport Observatory (ATO) in partnership with the International Road Federation (IRF), the profiles are designed to complement the Green Roads Toolkit. The toolkit provides a practical reference for integrating good practices across nine dimensions:

• Decarbonization
• Climate resilience
• Water and land management
• Pollution reduction
• Conserving biodiversity
• Responsible sourcing of materials
• Improving quality of life
• Disaster preparedness
• Fostering inclusive growth

This 2025 edition builds on earlier work to provide a comprehensive resource for guiding the planning, development, construction, and management of greener, more sustainable roads.

Afghanistan is a paradox of geography and connectivity. Spread over 652,000 square kilometers, the nation houses 42.6 million people, yet faces significant access and connectivity challenge. The road network measures 177,700 kilometers. Most of this—91%—consists of local and rural tracks. Primary arteries are scarce. Road infrastructure density stands at 272 meters per square kilometer. Availability has risen, climbing from 1.9 kilometers per thousand people in 2000 to 4.2 kilometers in 2024, but the deficit remains acute. Motorization rates tell a story of suppressed mobility. There are 51 vehicles per thousand people. The Asia-Pacific average is 317.

Road transport greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions hit 3.5 million tonnes of CO2e in 2024. The trajectory is steep. Since 2000, sector emissions have increased by 14.4% annually. The broader economy grew its emissions by only 3.5%. Transport is outpacing development. Consequently, the sector now accounts for 86% of total transport emissions and 11% of the national aggregate. Efficiency is lagging. The emissions intensity of the road sector sits at 39 grams of CO2e per USD of GDP. The regional peers in Central and West Asia average 33; the broader Asia-Pacific sits at 26. Decoupling has not begun.

The fleet composition locks in this inefficiency. Light-duty vehicles dominate at 55%, while trucks make up 15%. The transition to electric mobility is non-existent. A UNEP E-mobility Readiness Index score of 39 out of 100 confirms the barrier: policy scores a mere 5, finance a 4.

Nature bears the weight of this infrastructure. The roads cut through fragile lands. Of the 17 Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs), 13 have been breached by road infrastructure. This equates to 8 meters of road per thousand square kilometers of protected ground. Water stress is concurrent. The nation extracts 55% of its renewable water, far above the regional average of 36%.

The air pollution is intense. The concentration of PM 2.5 hit 49.9 micrograms per cubic meter. The cost is paid in lives and currency. Tailpipe emissions claimed at least 496 premature lives. The economic loss from health damages linked to PM 2.5 exposure is estimated at $6.2 billion—roughly 7% of GDP.

Resilience is low. The network is brittle. Afghanistan ranks 54th out of 208 in the National Road Vulnerability Index. A single hazard can sever critical lifelines. Annual losses to transport infrastructure average $3.3 million. Bridges and tunnels, though a fraction of the length, absorb a disproportionate share of this damage. Under a 4.5-degree warming scenario, extreme precipitation threatens over 1% of road and rail assets. The danger is not theoretical. Since 2000, 156 disasters—mostly floods and landslides—have killed nearly 14,000 people.

Inequity defines access. 16.7 million rural residents live beyond the reach of an all-season road. They are cut off from markets, healthcare, and schools. In the cities, the situation is hardly better. In 43% of urban centers, only two out of ten residents have access to public transport. The logistics performance is improving, rising to rank 139 in 2023, yet network efficiency remains poor at 0.49 out of 1.0.

The sector excludes women almost entirely from the workforce. Of the 426,000 employed in transport operations, women comprise just 0.2%. Safety is another failure. Road crashes killed an estimated 9,684 people in 2021. In Afghanistan, road crash fatalities increased by approximately 6.4% per year between 2016 and 2021. If this pattern persists, the gap between current trends and the 2030 target will only widen. To halve fatalities by 2030, the rate must more than triple to 7.4%.

The baseline reveals a system defined by high friction and deep vulnerability. While the region pivots toward electrification and resilience, Afghanistan remains locked in a high-emission, low-access paradigm. Without an immediate structural shift in policy and finance, the road network will remain a barrier to development rather than its catalyst.

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