Humanitarian Consequences For Many Vulnerable Rural Communities
WHO IS BETTER DRUG FIGHTER: US OR TALIBAN “TERRORISTS”? Afghan poppy After returning to power in 2021, the Taliban vowed to end illicit drug production in Afghanistan and in April 2022 banned poppy cultivation, which is used to produce opium and heroin. A report by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said poppy cultivation has fallen by about 95 percent , from 233,000 hectares (575,755 acres) at the end of 2022 to 10,800 hectares in 2023. Opium production also fell from 6,200 tons to 333 tons in 2023. This year’s crop is estimated to produce 24-38 tons of heroin suitable for export, down from 350-580 tons last year. UNODC warned of possible “humanitarian consequences for many vulnerable rural communities” due to the sudden contraction of Afghanistan’s opium economy, as farmers have had to switch to much less lucrative alternative crops. Farmers’ incomes, estimated at $1.36 billion in 2022, fell 92% to $110 million this year, according t