In Myanmar, the United Nation's drug office says the cultivation of opium poppies has surged following the 2021 military takeover.

The UN Office on Drugs and Crime released a report that covers the first growing season since the coup.

It estimates that in 2022, the area of the country used to cultivate opium grew by a third from the previous year to more than 40,000 hectares, marking a reversal of the downward trend that started in 2014.

The potential amount of opium that can be produced is about 790 metric tons, nearly double estimates for 2020.

The UN office says sharp economic contractions caused by the pandemic and the military takeover may have pushed rural households to rely on income from the crop.
Jeremy Douglas, UN Office on Drugs and Crime Regional Representative, said, "What we're seeing is people returning to the employment opportunity that they have available to them in rural areas, particularly in the North and in border areas, and that happens to be opium."

The so-called Golden Triangle, a remote border area where Myanmar, Laos and Thailand all meet, is notorious for opium production. The crop can be made into heroin.

The office warns that without alternatives for income, cultivation and production are likely to continue expanding.