MYANMAR'S HIDDEN DRUG WAR

Shan and Karenni State (Myanmar) - March, 2025

After the Taliban banned poppy cultivation in Afghanistan, Myanmar became the world’s leading producer of opium — and a major hub for synthetic drugs like methamphetamine.

In 2023, Myanmar’s poppy fields covered over 47,000 hectares (more than 116,000 acres), according to UNODC estimates. By 2024, production reached about 995 tonnes of raw opium — a 135% increase since the military seized power in 2021. The estimated gross value of the country’s opium and heroin trade last year ranged between $589 million and $1.57 billion.

For years, the Pekon region in southern Shan State was controlled by pro-junta militias who managed and protected the trade. Today, it is under the control of Karenni resistance forces, who are trying to dismantle a system that remains deeply entrenched.

The harvest is often paid for in advance by Chinese groups, who buy directly from poor farmers. The opium is then transported north, processed into heroin in jungle labs controlled by the junta and its affiliates.

At the same time, with precursors imported from China and India, methamphetamine is manufactured and trafficked across borders into China, Laos, Thailand, and the West.

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