Illegal poppies still dominate agriculture in Afghanistan

Monday 12 May 2014 11:37AM (view full episode)

Opium poppies are still the main crop in Afghanistan, but efforts are underway to move agriculture off the black market and ensure Afghan farmers have the ability to make money from other sources. Greg Muller and Cathy Pryor report.

As international troops pull out of Afghanistan, efforts are now turning to helping ensure the country can rebuild after years of conflict.

With 75 per cent of the population reliant on agriculture, a sustainable farming industry is at the top of the list. However, years of war have taken their toll and illegal opium poppies still have a stranglehold over the local economy.

We don't have a strong enough army...for the farmers to grow legitimately and transport to market.

Safiullah Omid

Safiullah Omid worked in Kabul as an auditor and adviser with the Afghanistan Rural Finance Corporation and is now studying foreign aid in Australia with the hope that one day he will return to his home country. He says that while fertile soils have helped people produce pomegranate, dried fruits and saffron for generations, Afghanistan's main agricultural product today is still poppies.

The United Nations has reported that the illegal opium trade has a farm value of just under US$1 billion. Mr Omid says that if farmers can be brought into a legal market, legitimate income will start to generate tax revenue for the benefit of the whole country. He also believes the production of high value crops such as saffron could surpass the value of the illegal opium trade if properly managed.

'One of our biggest challenges is having a illicit crop in cultivation and production,' he says.

'Saffron could be a replacement for poppies and could have a market value of $1400 per kilogram, compared to opium where the returns to farmers per kilogram is insignificant.'

Dr Brian Hilton is a food security adviser for World Vision Australia and has recently returned from Afghanistan where he worked on a Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade program to assess the potential of agricultural projects.

He says he was particularly interested in helping to develop the production of winter wheat, pistachio and saffron crops.

One of the major challenges facing Afghanistan is deforestation, as years of conflict have seen little attention given to land management. In a very cold climate, most trees have been used for firewood.

Dr Hilton sees a particularly bright future in pistachios because of the strong international demand in the west.

'I focused more on pistachio because I see the markets as bigger, and with pistachio you can do some reforestation of the mountains,' he says.

'Everyone can do pistachio and the processing and selling is quite an easy job. Farmers were getting $12 per kilogram for the split pistachio, and so with 20 trees you can make $2000 dollars. To me, that is the moneymaking crop that we need to get behind.'

Dr Hilton says that in a country where the roles of men and women remain separate, support also needs to be given to women, who traditionally make income through honey and egg production. Raising chickens can be problematic because of diseases and the high cost of feed. However, honey production can be improved through simple measures such as planting more bee-attracting flowers and plants. He says education is the key, and aid organisations are focusing their attention on training local female teachers so it is possible for girls to go to school.

However, one of the biggest impediments to agriculture, like other aspects of daily life in Afghanistan, remains security. The ability to get produce to market safely is crucial. Mr Omid says with international troops now pulling out of Afghanistan, the situation needs to be urgently addressed.

'We don't have a strong enough army in order to secure these areas, especially for the farmers to grow legitimately and transport to market.'


Safiullah Omid
Formally with Afghanistan Rural Finance Company, Kabul.
Brian Hilton
Food security advisor with World Vision Australia


Greg Muller @gregmullerabc / Cathy Pryor