UNODC’s 2025 Afghanistan Opium Survey shows opium production down 32% but warns rising meth and economic hardship may push farmers back to illicit crops

The survey finds opium cultivation down by about one-fifth to 10,200 hectares and production falling by roughly one-third to 296 tons, reflecting continued market contraction since the 2022 ban. It warns, however, that criminal networks may be diversifying into methamphetamine and other synthetic drugs, posing new regional and global trafficking risks…