The cultivation of cocaine raw material broke a record

According to the United Nations (UN) report, the production of coca, the raw material for cocaine, has reached an all-time high in Colombia.

According to the annual report published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), last year coca, the main ingredient of cocaine, was planted on an area of ​​230 thousand hectares. This figure increased by 13 percent compared to 2021.

The report also states that potential cocaine production reached its highest level in the last twenty years, increasing by 24 percent to 1,738 tons last year.

Commenting on the report, UNODC Regional Director Candice Welsch said: “It is alarming that coca cultivation in the country is increasing every year,” stating that production increased in the southern border state of Putumayo. country.

Coca production in Colombia fell briefly from 2017 to 2020 with the demobilization of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc).

‘IT SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS A HEALTH PROBLEM’

Colombia’s first leftist leader, Gustavo Petro, in his speech at the drug trafficking summit in Cali, Colombia, on Saturday, called on the country to reconsider how it approaches drugs and stated that drugs should be seen as a health problem and not as a military problem. .

Petro’s administration is trying to reach peace agreements with drug trafficking organizations and armed groups to finance his political ambitions.

Justice Minister Néstor Osuna told reporters Monday that the government’s success on drug policy “must be measured by the reduction of violent crimes and the reduction of poverty in coca-growing regions.”

According to analysts, coca prices have fallen by approximately 30 percent.