§ Mr. HepburnTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what the latest estimate is of how much of Afghanistan's poppy fields have been destroyed; and what the UK is doing to help the Afghanistan Government combat the production of opium; [77929]
(2) what action the UK is taking to help the Afghanistan Government combat the production of opium; [78450]
926W(3) what his latest estimate is of how much of Afghanistan's poppy fields have been destroyed in the last 12 months. [78449]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienThe Afghan Government estimate their eradication programme destroyed approximately 17,300 hectares of the 2002 opium poppy crop. The United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention estimates that the size of the 2002 crop was 74,000 hectares.
The UK is co-ordinating international anti-narcotics assistance to Afghanistan. In consultation with the Afghan Government, other donors and international (especially UN) agencies, the UK has developed a strategy for the long term elimination of drugs from Afghanistan. It identifies four key areas where the international community should focus its support: providing alternative livelihoods for opium poppy farmers; improving Afghan drug law enforcement capacity; building up the capacity of Afghan drug control institutions; and reducing drug demand in Afghanistan.