Yousef Pashtun

Mohammad Yousef Pashtun (Pashto: یوسف پښتون ‎) is the Senior Adviser to the President of Afghanistan on Construction, Mines, Water & Energy. He previously served as Minister of Urban Development and Housing for two terms (2002-2003, 2005-2010) and Governor of Kandahar province, in 2003 replacing Gul Agha Sherzai.

Biography

Yousef Pashtun, an ethnic Pashtun of the Barakzai tribe, was born in the city of Kandahar. He was born to one of the elite families of Kandahar on November 15, 1946. His grandfather, General Mohammad Nabi Khan was the Army Chief of Southern Zone of Afghanistan during the Third Afghan - Anglo War under the command of King Amanullah Khan. His father, Brigadier Mohammad Ghani Khan, served as Corps Commander of Eastern and afterwards Northern Zone of Afghanistan. His maternal grandfather Haji Gul Muhammad Khan was an active politician and key figure in Southern Afghanistan's political leadership. His father in law Faiz Mohammad Angar was a famous political activist, reformist and Editor in Chief of weekly newspaper "Angar" (Burning Embers). Pashtun graduated from Ahmad Shah Baba High School in 1965. He began studying Engineering at Kabul University, and being ranked in top 10 of Afghanistan's Higher Secondary Board Exam, he soon received a USAID/Kabul University scholarship to attend American University of Beirut in Lebanon, where Pashtun earned a Bachelor's degree in Architecture, and two Masters degrees, one in Architecture (1973) and Urban Design and Planning (1977).