A man harvests opium as he works in an opium field outside Loikaw, Kayah state, Myanmar, November 30, 2016. Picture taken on November 30, 2016. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun
Dec 3 (Reuters) - Opium poppy cultivation in war-torn Myanmar has surged to its highest level in a decade, rising 17% in the past year as conflict and economic hardship push more farmers into the illicit trade, the United Nations said on Wednesday.
Poppy cultivation climbed to 53,100 hectares (205.02 square miles) this year from 45,200 hectares in 2024, the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said in a report, underlining Myanmar's position as the world's main known source of illicit opium amid declining production in Afghanistan.
