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Afghan opium production rebounds to nearly 1,500 tonnes

Afghanistan’s estimated opium output rose from about 300 tonnes to nearly 1,500 despite the Taliban’s cultivation ban, a United Nations survey found. Poppy fields now cover more than 43,000 hectares and have spread to additional provinces. Output remains below pre-ban levels. The UN urged investment in farming infrastructure and access to markets as high prices and limited livelihood alternatives challenge enforcement.

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Side view of an anonymous farmer bending beside opium poppies growing among cereal crops in northeastern Afghanistan.

Poppy cultivation expands despite the ban

Afghanistan’s opium poppy cultivation expanded sharply this year despite the narcotics ban imposed by the Taliban government. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the UN agency responsible for monitoring illicit drugs, put the area above 43,000 hectares. The increase reverses several years of much lower cultivation after the ban. The survey was released on 29 October.[1], [2]

Estimated opium output climbed from about 300 tonnes to just under 1,500 tonnes. Production and cultivated area remain below their pre-ban levels. Before the 2022 ban, the country supplied roughly 80 per cent of the world’s illicit opium. Taliban authorities say they eradicated 22,000 hectares this year.[1]

Cultivation shifts towards the northeast

Poppy was grown in 16 of the country’s 34 provinces, five more than a year earlier. Three quarters of the cultivated area lay in the northeast, replacing the southwest as the main growing region. Farmers concealed small plots among cereal crops or within walled compounds and staggered planting and harvesting to evade detection.[1]

High prices accompany limited livelihood options

Opium prices fell from $570 per kilogramme last year to $500, still far above pre-ban prices below $100. UNODC Executive Director Monica Juma called for investment in farm infrastructure, livelihoods and access to markets. Traffickers have drawn on older stockpiles since the ban; seizure data suggest those reserves may be shrinking.[1]

References

  1. News sourceUN NewsAfghan opium production rises fivefold in UN survey↩1↩2↩3↩4
  2. News sourceAmu TVUNODC: Afghanistan opium cultivation surges 325% in 2026↩
Chip wars and the supply chainRussia-Ukraine warEnergy transition and climate

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