The poppy crop was successful this year in Afghanistan, under the new administration and a new harvest of opium is now wending its way to heroin addicts along the drug route to the final destinations in Europe and the United States.
The United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention (ODCCP) estimated in February that the harvest might be between 1,900 and 2,700 metric tons of opium, which will then be converted to morphine and ultimately heroin. Other sources think the harvest will produce nearly double tonnage.
International drug traffickers receive 99% of the revenues from this illicit trade and the farmers themselves earn 1% for their labors. Nevertheless, the ODCCP estimates that this accounts for 10 to 15% of Afghanistan’s Gross Domestic product (GDP). The actual figures will not be available until September.
While addicts in the Western World are the targeted consumer group and thus the financial incentive, drug abuse infects peoples and nations all along the way.
The United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention (ODCCP) estimated in February that the harvest might be between 1,900 and 2,700 metric tons of opium, which will then be converted to morphine and ultimately heroin. Other sources think the harvest will produce nearly double tonnage.
International drug traffickers receive 99% of the revenues from this illicit trade and the farmers themselves earn 1% for their labors. Nevertheless, the ODCCP estimates that this accounts for 10 to 15% of Afghanistan’s Gross Domestic product (GDP). The actual figures will not be available until September.
While addicts in the Western World are the targeted consumer group and thus the financial incentive, drug abuse infects peoples and nations all along the way.