From hunger to heroin, Afghanistan’s opium crisis threatens the world again | Gravitas

Five years since taking the reins of power in Afghanistan, the Taliban often flaunts its achievements in its war on drugs.

Afghanistan, which was once the world's leading poppy producer, imposed a strict ban on poppy cultivation in 2022. However, this victory is beginning to unravel.

While poppy cultivation fell by 95% by 2025, the gains are fast reversing. According to the United Nations, the poppy cultivation area has more than quadrupled from 10,000 hectares last year to over 43,000 hectares this year.

Opium sales in Afghanistan generated an estimated 525 million US dollars in 2026 alone.

But what is the reason behind this?

The UN attributed this phenomenon to a lack of alternative livelihoods.

Now, many Afghan farmers are turning to poppy cultivation as they are struggling to feed their children.

Despite better harvests, high costs and low crop prices are squeezing poor farmers and limiting their access to food.

According to observers, declining farm income resulting in hunger is having a drastic toll on children.

For instance, the UN has warned that 10 out of 34 provinces of Afghanistan had critical levels of child malnutrition this year. This number could climb to 14 in 2027.

While the Taliban has asserted that actual poppy cultivation was about half the UN estimate, it has acknowledged the need to support alternative livelihoods for farmers.

While the Taliban's first ban on poppy in 2000 collapsed a year later after it was ousted from power, the current ban is expected to last longer.

However, farmers are facing harsher conditions than a generation ago, as recurring droughts have shrunk water bodies and worsened the situation.

Thus, the current crisis threatens to revive Afghanistan's role in the global heroin trade.