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UN: Opium cultivation increases in Afghanistan

Thursday, 03 November 2022 2:13 AM [ Last Update: Thursday, 03 November 2022 2:13 AM ]

Rahmatullah Baghban

Press TV, Kabul

Afghanistan's opium poppy cultivation has risen by a third over the past year, the UN's drugs agency said Tuesday. The UN body stated that the prices have risen after the Taliban's ban in April on poppy cultivation. The 2022 poppy crop was also "the most profitable in years," according to the UNODC.

The income made by farmers from opium sales more than tripled, hitting 1.4 billion dollars, the report added. The Taliban officials, on the other hand, reject the UN body’s finding, saying they are bringing poppy cultivation to zero.

Narration: The Taliban officials also echoed the UN drug agencies call on the international community to address the acute needs of the Afghan people, and to step up responses for the Afghan farmers. Taliban deputy economy minister, told Press TV the UN report was “politically motivated.”

This comes as Afghanistan is also reeling from a drug addiction crisis. According to official reports, there are between 3.5 to four million addicts in Afghanistan.

Decades of war and invasion have driven Afghanistan into a major field of poppy cultivation. It remains to be seen if the Taliban and the global community help uproot this tragedy.

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