Following the Military Council's coup in early 2021, it has been revealed that opium production has been rising in southern Shan State. Shan State is Myanmar's primary poppy-growing region and has been expanding during the last three years since the coup with opium cultivation expanding to over 100,000 acres.
In 2022, Myanmar's opium production amounted to 790 tons, marking a significant increase to 1,080 tons in 2023.As per the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) report released on December 12th, Myanmar has surpassed Afghanistan, traditionally the leading opium producer, to claim the title of the world's largest opium producer.
The report further indicated that Myanmar's poppy production witnessed three consecutive years of growth between 2021 and 2023 following the coup, accompanied by a 75 percent increase in the income of poppy farmers.
The post-coup upheaval in southern Shan State has resulted in skyrocketing prices, economic disruption, and the impracticality of cultivating other crops, prompting numerous local farmers to return to opium cultivation for its ease and profitability.
"Since the coup, our corn plantations became significantly less profitable, and the essential sustenance, rice, has surged to 150000 MMK per bag. Currently, the average price of poppy has surged to 356 USD per kilogram.
Although we know poppy cultivation is illegal, the harsh economic circumstances leave us with no other choices”, a woman engaging in opium cultivation told Shan Herald.
The military regime only engages in a cosmetic show of cutting down a few opium fields situated prominently along main roads, and those areas cultivated by non-compliant individuals, who fail to pay taxes to the regime’s militias in Shan State, while the remainder of the poppy fields remain untouched.
"In past years, they would pursue and eradicate poppy fields belonging to those who failed to pay dues. The current situation for this year is not precisely known, but they are targeting poppy fields obviously situated along the main roads”, the aforementioned woman said.
Even before the 2021 coup this was the normal practice in managing opium cultivation and at the same time foist blame or EAOs who were fighting against the junta which was reflecting in several UNODC reports compiled on data and assessment provided by the Myanmar’s military- controlled anti-narcotics officials.
In the past an UNODC report had wrongly accused the KIO/KIA of protecting an opium plantation in Kachin State whereas researchers found that the area marked in the UNODC map was well-known as being under the control of Junta-aligned militia group.
There have been similar complaints arising in Shan State.
