Opium poppy cultivation declined by 95% in Afghanistan: UNODC

KABUL (TOLOnews): The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said in a report that the “opium poppy cultivation and opium production dramatically declined after the ban prohibiting ‘Poppy Cultivation and All types of Narcotics’ was announced by the de facto authorities (DfA) in April 2022.”
“Opium poppy cultivation dramatically declined across all parts of the country and almost entirely in some provinces where opium poppy was illicitly cultivated for many years. Nationally, area under cultivation declined by 95% to a total of just 10,800 ha, indicating that farmers were adhering to the ban that was announced in April 2022,” the report reads.
The UNODC said that consequently, this has reduced the supply of opium and export quality heroin coming out of the 2023 harvest.
“Opium production saw a similar 95% decline from 6,200 tons produced in 2022 to 333 tons in 2023,” it said. “The total 2023 opium harvest could be converted into 24-38 tons heroin of export quality (50 – 70% purity). In 2022 that amount was 350- 380 tons.”