Afghan opium production up 87% to record level

Opium production in Afghanistan has increased 87 percent in 2017 to reach a record 9,000 metric tons, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said in a statement on Wednesday.

The Vienna-based organization released the figures from the latest Afghanistan Opium Survey in conjunction with the Afghan Ministry of Counter Narcotics.

It also noted that the total ground area used for opium poppy cultivation increased to an also-record 328,000 hectares, 63 percent more than the 201,000 hectares used in 2016.

Opium yields of an average 27.3 kilograms per hectare were also up 15 percent higher than last year.

At the same time, efforts by authorities to eradicate the plantations also increased 111 percent, to see 750 hectares of poppy cultivation destroyed.

The survey noted however that opium poppy cultivation expanded to new regions this year, and strong increases were seen in many provinces.

The UNODC said the record levels of production present multiple challenges for Afghanistan, neighboring countries, and the many countries that are either used for transit, or are target destinations for the opiates.

Executive Director Yury Fedotov said the international community and Afghanistan must "reprioritize drug control", and acknowledge that "every nation has a shared responsibility for this global problem".