Colombia Sets New Record for Cocaine Production
Colombia, the world’s largest exporter of cocaine, has set a new record for production of the illicit drug and cultivation of the coca leaf used to make it. According to a recent report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), coca leaf cultivation increased by 10% last year, while cocaine production surged by 53% from 1,738 tonnes to 2,600 tonnes.
This marked the highest levels of coca leaf cultivation and cocaine production since the UN began monitoring in 2001. Most of the cocaine produced in Colombia is destined for the United States and Europe, where it fuels a lucrative but deadly trade. Coca leaf production now covers over 253,000 hectares of land in Colombia, a staggering 625,100 acres.
The upward trend in coca leaf cultivation and cocaine production has continued unabated since 2014, despite a US-backed war on drugs that has cost millions of dollars. The areas with the biggest increase in 2023 were the Cauca and Narino departments, which are strongholds of dissident groups from the FARC guerrilla army that disbanded in 2017.
Some of the land used for coca leaf cultivation is owned by communities of African descent, Indigenous reserves, and protected forest areas. In fact, 20% of the total area under coca leaf cultivation belongs to communities of African descent, 10% to Indigenous reserves, and 18% to protected forest areas.
As Colombia prepares to host the COP16 global summit on biodiversity in the city of Cali, its first-ever leftist President Gustavo Petro has lashed out at US anti-drug policies, accusing them of causing a “genocide” of Latin Americans. Petro argues that the US focus on “repression” rather than prevention and public health has been counterproductive and disastrous.
The rising levels of cocaine production and coca leaf cultivation in Colombia are a stark reminder of the complexities and challenges of the global war on drugs. As the international community gathers in Cali to discuss biodiversity, the issue of cocaine production and its devastating impact on Latin America will remain a pressing concern.
