The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has described the recent surge in opium prices as historic. In 2024, the price of one kilogram of opium soared to $750, ten times its 2022 value.
Opium production has sharply declined following the Taliban’s ban, but UNODC warns that the skyrocketing prices continue to benefit major drug traffickers.
In a report released on 12 March, the UN highlighted a sharp drop in heroin and opium trafficking. Drug seizures have fallen by about 50 percent since 2021. However, despite the crackdown, Afghanistan’s opium stockpiles remain high. By the end of 2022, reserves were estimated at 13,200 tons, enough to sustain global demand until 2027.
Ghada Waly, Executive Director of UNODC, warned that rising opium prices and large stockpiles continue to fuel drug trafficking. She said the trade is highly profitable for organised crime and contributes to regional and global instability.
The report estimated that before the decline in cultivation, Afghanistan’s opium reserves were worth between $4.6 billion and $5.9 billion. This accounted for 23 to 29 percent of the country’s GDP in 2023. While these reserves helped cushion Afghanistan’s economy after the Taliban’s return to power, the UNODC found that only 30 percent of Afghan farmers had small to medium-sized reserves in 2022, suggesting widespread financial hardship.
The UN urged a coordinated response to target trafficking networks while promoting economic alternatives for farmers. It also warned that the ongoing opium shortage could lead to a shift towards synthetic opioids like fentanyl, which pose even greater health risks.