Dawlat Shah District is located approximately 74 km from Mihterlam, the provincial centre of Laghman Province in Afghanistan.
The district center is the village of Dawlat Shah, located on 34°57′10″N 70°04′12″E / 34.9528°N 70.07°E / 34.9528; 70.07 at 1583 m altitude in the Hindukush mountains in the valley of the Alishing river.
A key source of income is forestry; however, much of the forest was cut down to provide wood for shelter re-construction.
It was reported that due to lack of work most young men are without occupations and many are armed and become involved in criminal activities.
Nevertheless, it was reported that Dawlat Shah has good natural resources, such as forests, fruit and water.