MAZAR-I-SHARIF - Counternarcotics Minister Salamat Azizi on Thursday said her ministry was working on a plan aimed at creating cooperation to eliminate the scourge of narcotics in northern Balkh province.
During a visit to Mazar-i-Sharif, the capital of notehren Balkh province, Azizi told reporters that her ministry had also devised a five-year programme named “Action” for elimination of narcotics nationwide.
She said the Action was also supported by the international community and would continue until 2019.
“This programme has three objectives --- implementation of law on all people, fighting against drug workers and providing alternative income sources to farmers,” she said.
Azizi expressed concern over the increasing number of drug addicts and said around three million people in Afghanistan were addicted to drugs. She said there were very limited resources available for treatment of drug addicts.
She continued some foreign drug traffickers were behind the increased production of narcotics in Afghanistan. The international community should take more steps towards prevention of the phenomenon, Azizi said.
She said Afghan forces would help eradicate poppy farms in a number of Balkh districts.
However, provincial council member, Ibrahim Khairandish, said he did not believe the Afghan forces would eliminate all drug farms in Balkh.
He told Pajhwok Afghan News there was only one month remaining to harvest poppy crops and Afghan forces lacked equipment and workforce to eradicate them.
Khairandish asked the government to provide alternative income sources for farmers. (Pajhwok)