KABUL - The distribution of electronic identification cards will begin nationwide in two months but may only reach 80 percent of the population within three years, Afghan security and IT officials said on Wednesday.
The Communications and IT Minister Amirzai Sangin said before parliament on Wednesday that the plan for the distribution is ready but they are waiting for a proper design for the cards.

"The process is almost complete – we are only waiting for the design of the ID cards. We hope to start the distribution in two months," Sangin said.

He said the electronic cards will include finger print data, eye scan and other necessary information which will avoid any kind of possible fraud.

However, the distribution will not be complete by the time of the 2014 presidential election, slated for April 5.

Interior Minister Mujtaba Patang warned that the lack exact demographic statistics will be a major challenge ahead of the new ID card distribution.

"Lack of precise demographic statistics is a significant challenge for the distribution of electronic ID cards. We still don't know the exact population of every province," Patang said, but added that he hoped more than 80 percent of the populations will have electronic IDs within three years.

He emphasized that the remaining 20 percent will eventually get an electronic ID but it may take more than three years because of significant security challenges.

Despite mentions of a lack of precise demographic statistics, the Central Statistics Department Deputy Director Hasibullah Mouwahed said that Afghanistan will have a population of 27 million by the end of this Persian year (March 2013).

"Afghanistan's exact population is 27 million people, this is very precise and the counting process is implemented every ten years not every year," he said. (Tolo News)