Reductions in poppy cultivation, illicit drug trafficking, and drug abuse are inextricably linked to economic development, security, and governance in Afghanistan.  The illicit revenues and parallel power structures generated by the drug trade serve to distort the economy and undermine the elected government.  Ongoing insecurity in parts of the country can be linked to proceeds from the illicit drug trade inside Afghanistan, and beyond its borders.  A reduction in trafficking, and effective measures to eliminate the cultivation of poppy for narcotics, will increase state authority and reduce insecurity across the nation. 

So long as traffickers continue to operate, their interests are likely to become increasingly aligned with those of insurgent groups, corrupt officials, and others opposing an effectively governed state.  Collusion between these groups, as well as the activities of individual groups, will undermine progress towards equitable economic growth, social development, security, and governance. 

The fight against narcotics is therefore not only an anti-drugs agenda.  Counter-narcotics policy must be ‘mainstreamed’—that is, included and facilitated in both national and provincial plans—in order to reinforce the broader development process.  Bringing about a sustainable reduction in cultivation and trafficking cannot be a Ministry of Counter-Narcotics (MCN) target exclusively.  The Government must destroy a highly profitable enterprise that has become deeply interwoven within the economic, political, and social fabric of our country.  This is a task for all government ministries and will require the support of the entire international community.

Our goal is to secure a sustainable decrease in poppy cultivation, drug production, consumption of illicit drugs, and trafficking with a view to complete and sustain elimination.  As a result, it will pave the way for a pro-poor, private sector-led economic growth.

Five-Year Strategic Benchmarks

Key Policies and Coordination

Achieving Our Goals

• Pillar 1: Build Strong Institutions
• Pillar 2: Enhance Law Enforcement and Interdiction
• Pillar 3: Reduce Demand for Narcotics and Increase Treatment of Drug Addicts
• Pillar 4: Continue Eradication Efforts
• Pillar 5: Strengthen Criminal Justice
• Pillars 6, 7, & 8: Increase Public Awareness; Promote International & Regional Cooperation; Develop Sustainable Alternative Livelihoods

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Five-Year Strategic Benchmarks

1. By end-2010, the Government will strengthen its law enforcement capacity at both central and provincial levels, resulting in a substantial annual increase in the amount of drugs seized or destroyed and processing facilities dismantled; effective measures such as targeted eradication will be instituted as well.

2. By end-2010, the Government and other countries in the region will increase coordination and mutual sharing of intelligence, with the goal of increasing the seizure of drugs being smuggled across Afghanistan’s borders; effective action against drug traffickers will be a focal point.

3. By end-2010, the Government will increase the number of arrests and prosecutions of traffickers and corrupt officials.  It will improve its information base concerning those involved in the drug trade, with a view to enhancing the selection system for national and sub-national public appointments.

4. By end-2010, the Government will achieve a sustained annual reduction in the amount of land under poppy and other drug cultivation by strengthening and diversifying licit livelihoods, in addition to other measures.  This is part of the Government’s overall goal to decrease the absolute and relative size of the drug economy, in line with its Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target. 

5. By end-2010, the Government will implement programs to reduce the demand for narcotics, and provide improved treatment for drug users.

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Key Policies and Coordination

The updated National Drugs Control Strategy (NDCS) focuses on four key priorities that will make the greatest and most sustainable impact on the narcotics trade in the near term: 1) targeting the trafficker and the top end of the trade, 2) strengthening and diversifying legal rural livelihoods, 3) reducing the demand for narcotics, and 4) developing state institutions at the central and provincial levels. 

The Cabinet Subcommittee on Counter-Narcotics, a monthly meeting chaired by the President, will be the Government’s highest counter-narcotics policy-setting and coordinating body.  It will be tasked with reviewing the progress of the NDCS.  For its part, the MCN is given the mandate to coordinate the Government’s counter-narcotics policies.  Line ministries and other institutions include the Ministries of Interior, Rural Rehabilitation and Development (RRD), Agriculture, Public Health, Education, Culture, Defense, and the Office of the National Security Advisor.  A Senior Officials Monitoring Group, chaired by the MCN’s Deputy Minister, is also under consideration.  Consisting of nominated Deputy Ministers in the line ministries, it will ensure that the policies and programs of each ministry are consistent and mutually supportive.

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Achieving Our Goals

The Government’s counter-narcotics effort encompasses eight pillars that work towards the fulfillment of four priorities: 1) the degree to which drug trafficking networks are dismantled, 2) year-to-year increase in uptake of legal livelihoods, 3) sustained reduction in land under poppy cultivation, and 4) reduced demand for narcotics and improved treatment for drug users.

Pillar 1: Build Strong Institutions

Strong institutions require effective governance at the center and provincial levels.  The Afghan Government’s counter-narcotics policy also relies on community representative institutions to promote self-restraint in poppy growing and the democratic management of development investment.  The recently established Counter-Narcotics Trust Fund (CNTF) is designed to coordinate Government and donor activities on counter-narcotics, and achieve more effective resource allocation at the central, provincial, and district levels.  There is also continued efforts to develop Government capacity and coordination, and an annual review of its counter-narcotics strategy.

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Pillar 2: Enhance Law Enforcement and Interdiction

A process has been developed by which law enforcement organizations, including the Afghan Special Narcotics Force under the Office of the President, the Border Police, and the Counter-Narcotics Police (CNPA) are staffed, housed, and equipped to conduct operations countering the physical trafficking of drugs.  Increasing the risk of trafficking drugs through greater institutional capacity and law enforcement is essential to any interdiction effort.  The CNPA’s Mobile Detection Team will continue to interdict opiates and pre-cursor chemicals for heroin through its operations.

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Pillar 3: Reduce Demand for Narcotics and Increase Treatment of Drug Addicts

Reducing demand will involve raising awareness of drug dependency and abuse through community health care services as well as offering drug addicts treatment.  Drug use within Afghanistan is an increasing concern in the light of limited prevention, education, treatment, and rehabilitation services.  A number of projects have been launched, including expansion of treatment facilities and programs to spread awareness of the harm drugs cause.  Demand-reduction will also be integrated through primary/secondary school curricula as well as professional associations and universities.

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Pillar 4: Continue Eradication Efforts

A governmental system has been established to help the Afghan Eradication Force and governors plan, execute, and monitor eradication efforts.  Eradication must target areas where alternative livelihoods exist.  An annual plan, containing prioritized target areas within respective provinces, will be produced by the MCN.

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Pillar 5: Strengthen Criminal Justice

The criminal justice system will be strengthened to better support counter-narcotics efforts.  A major element will be ensuring that counter-narcotics-specific legislation is integrated within the justice system, as with the launch of the Criminal Justice Task Force (comprised of judges, prosecutors, and investigators).  The President issued a decree establishing a Narcotics Tribunal with country-wide jurisdiction to try offenders and public officials linked to the narcotics trade.  Work is also continuing to set up secure counter-narcotics prison facilities.

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Pillar 6: Increase Public Awareness

A sustained information campaign is crucial to spread awareness about the dangers of illicit cultivation and trade in opium.  The drive requires an inter-ministerial approach led by the MCN and involving line ministries such as the Ministries of Information and Culture, Interior, RRD, Education, etc.  The concerted effort must alert the Afghan people to the harm and shame that illicit opium cultivation and trade brings, persuade farmers not to cultivate opium poppy, and highlight the increasing effectiveness of Afghan law enforcement and criminal justice mechanisms in prosecuting the trade.

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Pillar 7: Promote International & Regional Cooperation

Due to the nature of the drug trade, the Afghan administration is working to improve cooperation and coordination with its immediate neighbors—Pakistan, Iran, and the Central Asian states—and the international community.  Efforts are underway to improve information sharing and develop closer working relationships with our neighbors concerning border control and law enforcement.  Judicial cooperation is another aspect that requires strengthening.  Afghanistan today is an active participant in various UNODC-sponsored meetings and forums aimed at combating the narcotics trade.

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Pillar 8: Develop Sustainable Alternative Livelihoods

As we work to eradicate poppy cultivation, it is initially imperative to mitigate short-term impacts on farmers who have lost their livelihoods through self-restraint or eradication.  Second, we must improve opportunities for Afghans to access sustainable licit income and employment, social assets, markets, and services.  Third, we must enhance the policy and planning environment for effective alternative livelihood activity.  And finally, we must ensure greater financial and technical support from donors to develop a range of alternative livelihoods.