KABUL: The spokesperson of the Ministry of Interior Affairs Mufti Abdul Mateen Qani, in a statement on late on Wednesday rejected the recent UN report and survey in increasing poppy cultivation in Afghanistan and called it as inaccurate and unfounded.
“The report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime of a 19% increase in opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan is untrue,” said the statement adding that the ministry’s assessments of drug cultivation and production indicate a significant decrease compared to the previous year, contradicting the UN survey findings.
The statement said: “The survey does not reflect reality and may have been conducted before the police campaigns aimed at eradicating poppy lands began.”
The police forces have conducted serious and successful efforts against drugs in 2022 and 2023, reducing cultivation to its lowest level, said the statement adding that this fight will continue with determination and decisiveness in 2024 and beyond.
This comes after the UN Office on Drugs and Crime reported yesterday that opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan has increased by 9% in 2024.