KABUL, Dec 23 (AFP) - President Hamid Karzai Thursday appointed a cabinet which pushed out many of the warlords who drove the Taliban from power in 2001 and picked out a line-up of reform-minded ministers who can push forward the rule of law and battle the country's growing drugs business.
The following are brief profiles on the figures who are expected to be major players in his government.
Minister of Defence: Abdul Rahim Wardak
As deputy minister of defence, Wardak built up a reputation as a key player in the UN-backed drive to disarm an estimated 60,000 fighters about half of whom have so far laid down their arms. An ethnic Pashtun, Wardak built a reputation fighting the Soviets in the 1980s before fleeing to the United States. How succesful he is at pushing forward defence reform and building a national army will depend on who Karzai appoints to work with him in the ministry.
Foreign Minister: Abdullah Abdullah
Abdullah was the main public face of the Northern Alliance in the lead-up to the fall of Kabul in October 2001 which led to his installation as foreign minister. Fluent in English the debonair doctor was popular with the West in his three years as foreign minister and helped to raise Afghanistan's profile on the international stage.
Minister of Interior: Ali Ahmed Jalali
A close ally of Karzai's, Jalali retains his post at the key Interior Ministry where he has strong backing from the United States. He has dropped his US citizenship to remain in the cabinet but has the backing of foreign donors and has built up a reputation for efficiency. He will have to play an important role in pushing forward security sector reform now that many big police posts are held by mujahedin commanders.
Minister of Finance: Anwar ul-Haq Ahady
Afghanistan's former Central Bank governor Anwar ul-Haq Ahady has pulled the country's central bank out of the dark ages and begun laying thefoundations of a modern financial system. The 53-year-old had an academic career in the US before he returned to Afghanistan in late 2001. A Pashtun nationalist, he oversaw the launch of stable Afghani currency.
Minister of Anti-Narcotics: Habibullah Qaderi
An engineer and former deputy minister of refugees, Qaderi is seen by the foreign community as competent and untainted by links with the country's burgeoning opium industry. Formerly a minor player in the Afghan government, Qaderi will have his work cut out battling poppy cultivation which now accounts for 87 percent of the world's opium.
Minister of Energy: Mohammed Ismael Khan
The self-styled Emir of Herat was the most powerful man in western Afghanistan, before he was ousted as governor of the western province in September. Karzai will hope that he will bring the vigour and iron control with which he governed Herat to the country's power sector which has been devastated by a quarter century of war.
Minister of Commerce: Amin Hedayat-Arsala
A former finance minister and one of Karzai's vice presidents, Asala is close to the president but was widely seen as ineffectual. He was replaced by Ashraf Ghani, a former World Bank official credited with attracting large donations of foreign aid.
Minister of Women's Affairs: Masooda Jalal
The only woman who ran for president, the 41-year-old Tajik doctor and mother of three rose to prominence at the constitutional loya jirga in 2002 when she ran against Karzai in the vote to elect a transitional leader. Although she received only around one percent of the vote Jalal managed to garner support in all of Afghanistan's major cities.
12/23/2004 18:11 GMT - AFP