§ Mr. WigginTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress his Department is making in meeting the target of cutting poppy production in Afghanistan.[164144]
§ Mr. RammellThe UK is supporting the Afghan Government in their efforts to eliminate poppy production in Afghanistan.
We have committed £70 million over three years and have a dedicated counter narcotics team in Kabul. According to the United Nations annual poppy crop survey in Afghanistan, the level of opium cultivation in Afghanistan in 2003 increased to 80,000 hectares from 74,000 hectares in 2002. While unwelcome, this is not unexpected. Experience of counter-narcotic policies in other countries, such as Pakistan and Thailand where production started from a much lower level and where there was greater central state control, shows production tends to increase before it decreases.
Increasing security and governance remains key to progress.