Afghanistan to get millions to reduce poppy cultivation
(Nov. 24, 2009)
The US government has made a commitment to provide financial aid to Afghan provinces that have reduced or eliminated the production of opium.
The United States signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday according to which it agreed to give $38.7 million to 27 Afghan provinces that eliminated or significantly reduced poppy production in the world's biggest supplier country, AFP reported.
According to the MOU, the money will be handed over to Afghanistan's counter-narcotics ministry, which will disperse the cash to the 27 different provinces to finance development or alternative crops.
Afghan Counter-Narcotics Minister General Khodaidad Khodaidad said on Monday that the money will benefit 20 (out of 34) provinces which are poppy-free and seven provinces where poppy cultivation has "significantly decreased over the last year."
The poppy crop in Afghanistan, the raw ingredient for making heroin, provides 90 percent of the world's supply of opium and is linked to corruption, addiction, and a drug trade that bankrolls the Taliban. Afghanistan has one of the highest addiction rates in the world.
A report published last month in The New York Times identified the brother of Afghan President Hamid Karzai as a CIA operative and a major opium dealer. He was also reported to have close ties with the Taliban.
The Opium trade is reportedly the major source of funding for the Taliban.
Khodaidad also expressed hope that by 2010, four or five more provinces would be free of poppy cultivation.
The United Nations has estimated the export value of Afghan narcotics at about 3.4 billion dollars per year, and Afghan officials have said that drug profits provide the Taliban with as much as 100 million dollars per year.
FTP/MB/HGL