According to The United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime, sophisticated laboratories inside Afghanistan are now converting 90 percent of the country's opium into heroin and morphine before smuggling it around the world.

UNODC representative, Christina Oguz told reporters in Kabul that the amount of the opium being processed in Afghanistan is around 90 percent - at least the lion's share,"

The local farmers have been freely involved in poppy cultivation in many southern parts of the country, and even it is reportedly said that most of the poppy crops are grown in government-owned land. If it is found to be true, it will challenge any efforts aimed at reducing poppy cultivation and drug trafficking in the country. The government is, therefore, bound to exert influence and will on the local people to get them convinced to cooperate with the government in combating drugs and poppy cultivation.

Oguz, UNODC representative, has also pointed out that that anyone flying over the major opium producing areas would see a lot of small fires in the mountains. These are heroin labs. The victory over the Taliban insurgents hinges largely upon the eradication of poppy cultivation and drugs. Unfortunately, the government and its international backers have not been able to bring about a change into the mind of the local farmers and population who earn their livelihood from opium. Instead some officials in the government have been major contributor to the poppy cultivators and drug traffickers. Ayub Rafiqi, head of a local non-governmental organization has stated that about 60 per cent of poppies are plucked from state-controlled fields which local officials rent out, largely under the table.

Right now, the government is playing a very good role in cultivating poppies and the persons who leases the land from the government; they are the ones who bring poppies to the market.

Using the shares of these productions, the Taliban are becoming an increasingly powerful movement in southern part of Afghanistan. So there is a dire need to adopt an effective strategy in this regard, otherwise fighting insurgency without attending to the challenges rising from opium and drugs will not prove successful.

-- Daily Outlook Afghanistan