Story perspectives
Opium Cultivation Plummets 20% in Afghanistan Amid Taliban Ban
11/7/2025
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Taliban Reduces Opium
- A United Nations report shows Afghanistan's opium cultivation fell 20% in 2025 to 10,200 hectares, from 232,000 hectares in 2022.
- The Taliban ban on opium production, imposed in April 2022, reduced opium output by 32% to 296 tonnes.
- Despite the ban, more than 40% of farmland remains fallow due to lack of alternatives.
- Seizures of synthetic drugs such as methamphetamine rose 50% in late 2024 as organized crime adapts.
