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This annual UN Office on Drugs and Crime report was released in February, 2010. (The summary findings were presented in September, 2009). The preface states, "The Afghanistan Opium Survey 2009 confirms that market forces are moving against the Afghan drugs trade as prices, revenues and excess production have put a damper on supply. As reported in September in the Summary Findings of this Survey, in 2009 opium cultivation in Afghanistan decreased by 22%, and production fell by 10% (to 6,900 tons). The number of people involved in opium cultivation (1.6 million) has dropped by one third, and the number of poppy-free provinces is up from 18 to 20.
The Afghanistan Opium Survey 2009 goes into considerably more detail than the Summary
Findings. It especially provides methodological evidence about how the information was derived. Furthermore, it introduces new information. Most importantly, it shows that the potential gross export value of Afghanistan’s opiates is down 18%, from $3.4 billion in 2008 to $2.8 billion in 2009. This is equivalent to around a quarter of GDP, down from a third last year. This can be attributed to lower cultivation, lower production, lower prices, and higher GDP."
