Myanmar to grow coffee instead of poppy to fight drug trafficking, according to the Agriculture Ministry

Myanmar intends to grow coffee and natural rubber instead of opium poppy to combat drug trafficking, Director General of the Planning Department of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation Kyaw Swe Lin told TASS. "Our country borders several states. It is in this mountainous area, which is controlled by certain ethnic groups, that poppy is mainly grown. It is difficult for the state to control this. However, we have developed a program and intend to replace poppy with natural rubber, coffee and other agricultural crops that will be of great benefit to our economy," he said on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum. Kyaw Swe Lin also noted that Myanmar is closely cooperating with international partners, including Russia, to combat drug trafficking. In December 2023, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reported that Myanmar had become the world's largest opium poppy producer after Afghanistan banned the cultivation of the drug in 2022. About the ...