Afghanistan Poppy Cultivations Down 95% In 2023, But…

Afghanistan‘s decades-long history of occupation, conflict and poverty is deeply intertwined with its role as a major global opium and heroin producer.

According to the new Afghanistan Opium Survey by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2023 marks a steep departure from this narrative, as cropland used for opium poppy growing was down 95 percent since last year.

The Taliban, who seized power in the country in 2021, have been conducting a campaign against the cultivation of the plant since this year – which observers have called sophisticated.

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However, as Statista’s Kathaina Buchholz reports, the sudden end of poppy growing that provided a livelihood for many in Afghanistan has put a large number of people at risk of even more drastic poverty.

The UN states that Afghan farmers seeking alternatives opted for more wheat or other cereal cultivation, leading to families expected to earn only a fraction of their previous incomes this year. According to the organization, a longer transition period could have allowed farmers with small plots to transition to higher value but slower growing crops like pomegranate or pistachios instead. Yet, the UN believes that the ban could be an opportunity to increase food security and even diversify the economy of Afghanistan, while doubts remain whether farmer will resist the ban in coming years as the effects of lost income become apparent.

The potential opium yield has fallen from 6,200 metric tons in 2022 to just 333 tons this year on just 10,800 hectares of cropland. This would convert to just 24-38 tonnes of export quality heroin, compared to the 350-580 tonnes estimated for 2022. Most poppy used to be grown in provinces like Helmand and Kandahar, which incidentally are also traditional Taliban strongholds. Also, the secluded eastern province Nangarhar and the western Badghis province bordering Turkmenistan used to be among the top producers. In 2000 and 2001, the Taliban had once before successfully cut down poppy cultivation but the ban wasn’t upheld during the U.S. invasion that ultimately led to the group losing its grip on power then.

Along with a crackdown on poppy cultivation, the Taliban in Afghanistan are also trying to curtail the harvesting of ephedra and other means of methamphetamine production. 

Data from UNODC shows that seizures of methamphetamine in Afghanistan have surged in recent years. In 2022, seizure numbers are on the same level for both drugs.

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The methamphetamine boom is a result of the economic crisis in Afghanistan that has been made more dire by the Taliban grabbing power in 2021. 

International sanctions and a general isolation of the country caused the local currency to depreciate, food prices to surge and public sector employment to be cut down, leading to the population seeking alternative means of livelihood.

The ephedra plant only grows at high altitudes, making it possible in parts of Afghanistan to harvest the source of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine directly.

However, the UN believes that using pre-fabricated ephedrine for methamphetamine production is actually more common in the country.