Introduction
The Afghanistan Opium Surveys have been implemented annually by the Ministry of Counter Narcotics (MCN) of Afghanistan in collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). In February 2019, the Ministry of Counter Narcotics was dissolved during the re-organisation of the Afghan government. This report is therefore the last joint MCN/UNODC Afghanistan opium survey report. The opium survey of the 2019/2020 season is being conducted by the Afghanistan National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA) in partnership with UNODC.
The Afghanistan opium surveys collected and analysed detailed data on the location and extent of opium poppy cultivation, potential opium production and the socio-economic situation in rural areas. The results provide a detailed picture of the outcome of the 2018 opium season and, together with data from previous years, enable the identification of medium- and long-term trends in the evolution of illicit opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan. This information is essential for planning, implementing and monitoring measures required for tackling a problem that has serious implications for Afghanistan and the international community.
The implementation of the survey would not have been possible without the dedicated work of the field interviewers, who often faced difficult security conditions.
The Afghanistan Opium Surveys 2018 were implemented under project AFG/F98, “Monitoring of Opium Production in Afghanistan”, with financial contributions from the Governments of Japan and the United States of America.