The Opium Economy in Afghanistan
An International Problem

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Vienna has published a comprehensive new study, The Opium Economy in Afghanistan: An International Problem. The UNODC has conducted annual opium poppy surveys in Afghanistan since 1994. Surveys provide the international community with valuable information on the location and extent of opium cultivation, production and prices. Afghanistan's opium production increased more than 15-fold since 1979, the year of the Soviet intervention. By the year 2000, the country was the source of 70 percent of all the illicit opium produced in the world. Following a decline in 2001, production resumed at high levels in 2002, again making Afghanistan the world's largest producer (followed by Myanmar and Laos), accounting for almost three-quarters of global opium production. The study goes beyond reporting on a single year's production and value. It examines Afghanistan's opium economy in order to understand its dynamics, the reasons for its growth, its beneficiaries and victims, and the problems it has caused domestically and abroad. The purpose of the study is to assist the country and the international community in developing and implementing a comprehensive response to this challenge.

A UNODC Publication Book Information: Sales Number: E.03.XI.6 ISBN 9211481570 226pp. List price: $25.00 Special Academic Price: $7.00