Government to inaugurate new drug control agency

The Tajik authorities will open open a new drug control agency on Friday to counter the trade in illicit drugs from Afghanistan, an ODCCP representative told IRIN on Wednesday. During the opening ceremony in the capital Dushanbe, Pino Arlaacchi, ODCCP executive director, is due speak about the progress that has been made since the inception of the agency in April 1999. Afghanistan has produced about 3,276 mt of opium this year, according to a recent crop assessment by the UN Drug Control Programme. The ODCCP representative explained that in the past, drugs were smuggled primarily through Iran. However, “Iran has since tightened its border controls. It is now estimated that about half of the illicit drug shipments from Afghanistan are being routed through Turkmenistan and Tajikistan,” IRIN was told. ODCCP estimates that 120 mt of heroin destined for Europe and Russia is routed through Tajikistan annually.