This Phase Two paper of the Feasibility Study On Opium Licensing in Afghanistan for the Production of Morphine and Other Essential Medicines assesses the impact of current and future eradication efforts in Afghanistan while drawing parallels with the impact of similar policies already carried out in South East Asian and Latin America. It argues that forced eradication has a devastating effect on Afghanistan’s environment, creates social unrest and deepens rural poverty. As an alternative to eradication, the root causes of the opium crisis should be addressed by a pro-poor development strategy which empowers the local farming communities and provides them with sustainable livelihoods.
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