In 2022, a customer could purchase one kilogram of opium by $75, but $750 was needed for the same amount in 2024. The cost increase makes up for the decline of poppy crops and overall output for vendors.
The findings were validated by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, voicing concerns over continuing rising trend in opium prices. The UN body reports that the total amount of heroin and opium discoveries has decreased by around 50% since Taliban takeover of power in Afghanistan. It emphasizes how opiate trafficking has decreased as a result of Afghanistan’s output declining after the prohibition implemented by Taliban authorities.
The main organically active component utilized to make heroin is opium. The former is a stronger synthetic substance that puts society’s health more at risk. Afghanistan, Colombia, and Myanmar are the main countries in the world that provide illicit opium.
Substantial gains continue to be earned as a result of the increased costs. High-level shippers and merchants in organized criminal organizations are the main beneficiaries. According to the UN organization, 13,200 tons of opiate were in storage by December, 2022. That might cover the demand for Afghan drugs for two more years.
A United Nations official claims that because of the spike in opium costs, drug dealing in Afghanistan is still a very lucrative illegal industry. Significant medicine inventories increase revenues even more.
Transnational organized criminal gangs are receiving the revenues. Additionally, it undermines Afghanistan’s security and stability along with the surrounding region. Targeting trafficking groups requires a concerted counter-narcotics movement. It is also critical to make investments in sustainable economic prospects for growers in order to give Afghanistan a stable future.
Tempting Benefits
It is estimated that Afghanistan’s stocks were worth less than $5.9 billion prior to the decline in opium production. In 2023, it represented little less than 30% of the national GDP. Some common Afghans could have been able to weather the debilitating economic issues thanks to this. Since the Taliban took back control of Afghanistan, the nation has seen dire economic circumstances.
It’s likely that big merchants and shippers own 60% of inventories. In 2022, no more than 30% of farmers own small to medium stockpiles. According to the UN, the majority of cultivators who once grew opium are thus probably going through a very difficult financial time.
There is an urgent need for economically viable options to deter farmers from going back to growing poppies. The stakes are higher for an increase in production considering the astronomical cost of opium currently. Additionally, the UN agency cautioned that the ongoing opium scarcity would encourage both customers and marketers to turn to other substances. These substances, including synthetic opioids, have been shown to be much more dangerous than opium or heroin.
