Afghan Opium Survey: export value of Afghan opium is falling

The potential gross export value of Afghanistan’s opiates is down 18 per cent, from US$ 3.4 billion in 2008 to US$ 2.8 billion in 2009 – an equivalent of around a quarter of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

This is the main finding of the Afghanistan Opium Survey 2009 issued today by UNODC. The decline can be attributed to less cultivation, lower production, lower prices and relatively higher GDP.