Afghan farmers plant 9,000 hectares of poppies in Pakistan

Afghanistan has been the world's largest opium producer for decades, but that status has shifted since the Taliban banned narcotics in 2022. Production is now moving across the border into neighboring Pakistan and Iran.

A report from the British firm Alcis, released in August, identifies more than 9,000 hectares of poppy cultivation in Pakistan's Balochistan province. David Mansfield, a UK-based expert on Afghanistan's drug trade, noted that this shift has turned the tri-border region into a major center for opium production. The new fields are concentrated in the Loralai and Killa Abdullah districts.

The expansion is driven by Afghan farmers from Kandahar and Helmand who cross into Pakistan to lease land. These growers bring capital and experience, investing millions of Pakistani rupees in solar-powered wells. They share profits with local landowners. In Iran's Sistan-Baluchistan province, a similar pattern is emerging where Afghan farmers work as tenants and sharecroppers. Satellite imagery from 2026 shows these fields using drip irrigation, a costly method that suggests growers expect the crops to remain.

Local officials in Balochistan have disputed the scale of the problem. Monawar Hussain, the chief administrative officer for Killa Abdullah, said cultivation declined following an eradication campaign last year. However, Alcis imagery shows no clear evidence of this destruction. Abdul Qahar Wadan, a former National Assembly member, claimed that senior military officials and political power brokers support the cultivation in exchange for commissions. A farmer in the district said growers pay bribes through intermediaries and sometimes plant on barren land so officials can destroy the crop for public view.

Economic hardship is a primary driver for local residents. Lala Jan Kakar, a resident of Killa Abdullah, stated that drought and flash floods have destroyed traditional fruit farming. He noted that the demand for poppies and the resulting income far exceed those of fruit. Mansfield observed that many farmers doubled their cultivated land in 2026, indicating that much higher production levels are likely in 2027.

Inside Afghanistan, cultivation is also rebounding despite the ban. Production is concentrated in Badakhshan Province, which accounts for about half of the national output. Mansfield said southwestern cultivation almost doubled between 2025 and 2026. Farmers in these areas often hide poppies within wheat fields or behind compound walls to avoid detection by the Taliban.

The next growing season is expected to bring further increases. Mansfield warned that if farmers interpret the Taliban's recent directive against home searches without court orders as a sign of tolerance, opium production could rise dramatically in 2027. Armed groups in the region are also competing for tax revenues from the drugs trade and related cross-border activities.