Export value of Afghan opium plummeting, says UN anti-drug agency

United Nations, New York, 17 December 2009 - The potential gross export value of Afghanistan's opiates has fallen 18 per cent since last year, according to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

The Office, in its latest survey on Afghanistan's opium, writes that the export value of opiates in that country declined from $3.4 billion in 2008 to $2.8 billion in 2009 a fall that is equivalent to around a quarter of the countrys gross domestic product. The decline can be attributed to lower opium cultivation, lower production, lower prices, and a relatively higher GDP.

"Military and market forces are reducing the impact of opium on Afghanistan's economy", according to UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa. But he warned that more also needs to be done to combat corruption in the country

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