International Less Afghan opium: UN warns of dangerous alternatives
As opium production in Afghanistan has collapsed, UN drug experts are concerned about new and dangerous alternative products. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Vienna warned in particular against the synthetic heroin substitute Nitazene, which has already led to deaths in several European countries.
26.06.2024, 10:39
SDA
The cultivation of opium poppy, from which the heroin raw material opium is obtained, was banned in Afghanistan by the Islamist Taliban in 2022. Last year, global opium production plummeted by 74% to just under 2,000 tons, according to the UNODC World Drug Report. So far, no supply bottleneck has been identified on the market, said UNODC expert Thomas Pietschmann. "The bottleneck will come. And then there could be a problem," he warned. If heroin users are not increasingly supplied with alternative medical preparations in the event of a shortage, they could turn to illegal, synthetic substitute drugs such as nitrates or fentanyl, the report said. These substances have a stronger effect than heroin and therefore carry a higher risk of fatal overdose.
According to the report, 292 million people use drugs worldwide, which is 20 percent more than ten years ago. The largest proportion - 228 million - is made up of cannabis users.
The UNODC experts also expressed concern about the sharp increase in the production and consumption of cocaine. This not only leads to violence in South America and the Caribbean, but also to health problems in Europe, they said.
