Opium production has soared in Myanmar and is at its highest level in nine years, the United Nations (UN) said today. Almost 795 metric tons were produced last year in 2022, which is almost double what was produced in 2021. was 423 metric tons.

The United Nations believes that this is caused by economic difficulties and insecurity, as well as by the increase in the global price of opium resin, which is used to produce heroin, the BBC reports. The civil war caused by the 2021 coup is still ongoing in Myanmar.

"The economic, security and administrative disruptions that followed the military takeover in February 2021 intersected, and farmers in the remote, often conflict-prone areas of the northern Shan and border states had no choice but to return to opium," said the UN Office on Drugs and Crime.

In the region bordering Thailand and Laos, the so-called Golden Triangle has always been a major source of opium and heroin production. A UN report released today said Myanmar's economy faced external and domestic shocks in 2022, such as the Russia-Ukraine war, ongoing political instability and rising inflation, providing "strong incentives" for farmers to start or expand. expand poppy cultivation. Myanmar is the second largest producer of opium in the world, after Afghanistan.

These two countries are the source of most of the heroin sold worldwide. The annual survey conducted by the UN shows that production in Myanmar has increased again, reports Beta. Opium production in 2022 was the highest since 2013, when 870 metric tons were produced.