Balkh is a town in the Balkh Province of Afghanistan, about 20 km northwest of the provincial capital, Mazar-e Sharif, and some 74 km s…Balkh is a town in the Balkh Province of Afghanistan, about 20 km northwest of the provincial capital, Mazar-e Sharif, and some 74 km south of the Amu Darya river and the Uzbekistan border. Its population was estimated to be 138,594 in 2021-22 by the Afghan National Statistic and Information Authority. Listed as the current 8th most populous city in the country, 2024 estimates set the population of Balkh at 114,883.