| Coca cultivation in Latin America |
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| World Affairs Talk | |
| Wednesday, 20 June 2007 | |
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According to the report, cultivation of coca grew eight percent in Bolivia and seven percent in Peru but fell in Colombia by nine percent; which looked at cultivation in the Andes, the main cocaine-producing region in the world. A total 156,900 hectares were used to grow the plant last year in the region, down from 159,600 in 2005 a 2% drop - the report concluded. On the whole, demand for cocaine has remained steady throughout the world, with a slight increase in Europe offset by a decline in the US. Even, since 2000, coca cultivation in the Andean region has fallen by almost 30 percent to 158,000 hectares. This is a dramatic decline, and a signal that governments and farmers are committed to eliminating drug cultivation. Though in the Andean region, the struggle is still on between, on one side governments and citizens committed to legitimate industry and prosperity, and on the other side, narco-traffickers intent on preserving the status quo. Despite observing a decreasing tendency, Colombia is a leading producer of coca and much of the country's coca is grown by poor farmers because it generates more income than any other crop. According to the director of Amazon Institute of Scientific Investigation, 1.8 million hectares of rainforest in Colombia have been destroyed to make room for drug plantations. Government has long battled a cocaine-fueled insurgency in its remote regions. In an effort to destroy the rebels' chief source of income, the Colombian government has targeted coca fields with aerial spraying of herbicides. Coca provides the key ingredient in cocaine and its eradication is a fundamental part of the US-backed war on drugs. But despite a lower area of cultivation and efforts by local law enforcement agencies to destroy clandestine laboratories and seize merchandise, Colombia remains the world's biggest coca grower and is responsible for 62 percent of the world's supply of cocaine. Reducing coca cultivation requires tackling other aspects of the drug trade, including cutting supply and demand and halting trafficking. Measures taken in Peru to tackle coca production paid off. All Andean countries require greater support for development assistance that can generate growth and create brighter prospects for communities at the beginning of the supply chain. While the coca plant can be found throughout most of Latin America, varieties containing the cocaine alkaloid are cultivated and converted primarily in Peru, Bolivia and Colombia. While methods of cultivating the coca plant are similar in many ways throughout Peru, Bolivia, and Colombia, there are differences in techniques because of terrain, tradition, and other factors. Share & Bookmark             |
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| Last Updated ( Friday, 29 June 2007 ) |
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