Japan's foreign minister has notified the chief of a UN anti-crime agency of intention to provide a grant for Afghanistan to tackle serious drug problems there.

Kamikawa Yoko met Ghada Waly, executive director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, or UNODC, in Tokyo on Thursday.

The Japanese foreign ministry says that in 2022, Afghanistan's ruling Taliban interim government banned the cultivation of poppies, which are used to make heroin.

But cultivation continues in some areas in the country and health damage caused by drugs has become a serious social problem.

At the meeting, Kamikawa told Waly that Japan will provide about 1.5 billion yen, or nearly 9.3 million dollars, via UNODC to support Afghanistan's anti-narcotics measures. The two sides signed and exchanged notes for the aid.

The ministry says the grant will be used to build a facility to switch from poppies to other crops that could become alternative income sources for local communities.

It says the aid will also be spent to renovate a rehabilitation center for patients with drug addiction.

Kamikawa said Japan will contribute to the peace and stability in Afghanistan and surrounding regions in cooperation with UNODC.