Export value of Afghan opium plummeting, says UN anti-drug agency
407 views · Published 17 December 2009 · 1:06 · Indexed 20 September 2026
Channel: United Nations · 2009 · News & Politics
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 News story: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=33281&Cr=unodc&Cr1=
More from this channel
-
2:09
Ban Ki-moon gets first-hand look at Gaza devastation
-
2:49
"I sincerely hope that we are going forward not back": UNRWA, Director of operations in Gaza
-
1:43
Voicing optimism, Ban Ki-moon congratulates US President on inauguration
-
1:23
UN welcomes decision by the US administration to close the detention facility in Guantanamo Bay
-
1:45
Top UN envoy appeals to Congolese rebels to seek peace after arrest of leader
-
2:34
Secretary-General speaks out against clashes in North Darfur
-
10:40
UN observes Holocaust Remembrance
-
4:17
UNFPA Welcomes Restoration of U.S. Funding