Il Myanmar has become the world‘s largest producer of opium in 2023, surpassing l’Afghanistan. This was revealed by the latest report from the UN Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention (UNODC). According to estimates, by the end of the year the former Burma will have increased the production of 36%, reaching 1.080 tons of opium (from which heroin and morphine are derived). The reasons for the overtaking are to be found inpolitical instability of the country, but also and above all in a 95% drop of poppy cultivation in Afghanistan, which until now was at the top of the list (with over 80% of the astonishing production between 2015 and 2020 and profits of millions of dollars per year).
The Afghan production of opium, which began in the 1980s and grew during the civil war of the 1990s, was banned by the Taliban in 2000: under the governments supported by the USA there was a new production boom, until the current collapse after the return to power of the fundamentalists, who have cultivations are prohibited in April last year. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund had repeatedly documented the significant weight of the illicit opium supply chain on the Afghan GDP, equal to approximately 14%. The decline in production therefore has a significant economic impact.
Meanwhile, according to the UN, the opioid market in Myanmar has reached a value of between one billion and 2.4 billion dollars, which represents a percentage between 1.7% and 4.1% of 2022 GDP. The Narcotics Control Bureau’s report explains that poor access to markets and state infrastructure for “traditional” crops plays a key role in farmers’ decisions to turn to opium. inflation rampant. Moreover, the border region between Burma, Laos and Thailand – the so-called “golden triangle” – has always been an important center of drug production and trafficking.
As reported by Guardianthe main Burmese cultivation area is the state of Shanwhose northern part was disrupted by fighting and displacement after an alliance of armed groups ethnic minority has launched an offensive against the military junta in power. Shan state occupies almost a quarter of the territory of the country. According to the United Nations, Shan is also the main source of methamphetamine of Southeast Asia. The report also states that the army, which ousted the elected government and seized power in 2021, despite claims he’s not really intent on putting an end to the multibillion-dollar opium trade.