The president of Afghanistan has named seven areas of the country which will pass from control by foreign troops into Afghan hands from July.
They are the relatively peaceful provinces of Kabul, Panjshir and Bamiyan, the cities of Herat and Mazar-e Sharif and the town of Mehterlam.
President Hamid Karzai also named Lashkar Gah, capital of the volatile Helmand province, the BBC reports.
The handover is seen as a critical step in a transition of power before foreign troops end combat operations in 2014.
The first tranche of foreign troops is set to leave Afghanistan in July this year.
Mr Karzai said that after July the primary role of overseas troops in the these areas will be to train and equip Afghan security forces. NATO troops will cease to engage in battle.
New Zealand defence, police and civilian staff have been serving in the Bamiyan Provincial Reconstruction Team.
Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully has welcomed the news that the province will come under Afghan leadership on security, governance and development.
There are about 140 defence staff there and Mr McCully says that number is unlikely to change for at least the next year.
