The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) secretly carried out a covert operation between 2004 and 2015 aimed at weakening Afghanistan’s opium industry by dispersing genetically modified poppy seeds, according to an investigative report by The Washington Post.

The decade-long program allegedly sought to reduce the narcotic potency of Afghan poppies, thereby disrupting the billion-dollar opium trade.

Aerial Distribution and Presidential Authorization

Citing 14 sources familiar with the classified operation, The Washington Post reported that the CIA airdropped specially engineered poppy seeds across Afghanistan’s key opium-producing provinces, including Helmand and Nangarhar. The seeds were designed to yield plants with minimal levels of alkaloids — the chemical compounds used in heroin production.

The operation was reportedly authorized by President George W. Bush and later continued under the Obama administration, managed through the CIA’s Crime and Narcotics Center. British C-130 aircraft were used in the early phases to disperse the modified seeds over vast tracts of farmland.

Former U.S. officials described the initiative as “tremendously expensive,” acknowledging that despite years of effort, the program produced mixed results and failed to significantly reduce Afghanistan’s role as the world’s top opium supplier.

Limited Success and Lingering Impact

While the CIA has not publicly commented on the report, sources said the program’s overall impact was limited, as Afghan farmers continued cultivating traditional, high-yield poppy varieties. By the time the operation was phased out in 2015, Afghanistan’s opium production remained central to both the national economy and insurgent funding networks.

The revelation underscores the breadth of U.S. intelligence operations aimed at disrupting narcotics financing in conflict zones during the two-decade war in Afghanistan.

Post-2022 Context: Opium cultivation declines under IEA ban

Since the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) imposed a nationwide ban on opium cultivation in 2022, production within Afghanistan has fallen sharply. However, analysts warn the narcotics trade is now shifting to neighboring countries, including Pakistan and Iran.

According to Nikkei Asia, Afghanistan’s opium cultivation dropped to about 10,200 hectares in 2025 — a 20% decline from the previous year. The UK-based geospatial firm Alcis offered a slightly higher estimate of 12,800 hectares, but confirmed that cultivation levels remain dramatically below the 200,000 hectares recorded before the IEA ban.

The Afghan Ministry of Interior recently announced that narcotics-related cultivation, trade, and trafficking have been “effectively reduced to zero” inside the country. Authorities said nearly 200,000 kilograms of natural and synthetic drugs were seized and destroyed over the past year.

The CIA’s now-exposed program, combined with Afghanistan’s recent anti-narcotics drive, highlights the long-standing geopolitical and economic complexity surrounding opium production in the region.

While the IEA’s ban has sharply reduced cultivation inside Afghanistan, experts caution that the regional narcotics economy is merely evolving — not disappearing.

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, on Thursday officially inaugurated the “Parandeh” power plant, which has a production capacity of 4 megawatts, in Panjshir province.

During the ceremony, he emphasized that electricity is crucial for industrial development and highlighted Afghanistan’s abundant potential for energy production from rivers, wind, and solar power across the country. He noted that achieving energy self-sufficiency is a top priority for the Islamic Emirate, enabling the nation to reduce imports, export high-quality goods, and attract investment.

“The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is firmly committed to making the country self-reliant in industry, agriculture, transport, trade, and all other sectors. This is not just a slogan—it is a practical plan,” Mullah Baradar said.

He also called on traders and investors to invest in domestic industry and electricity production, assuring them that the government will provide all necessary support and facilities.

The Parandeh power plant is expected to supply a significant portion of Panjshir residents’ electricity needs, marking an important step toward the province’s energy development.

Afghanistan’s economic recovery is buckling as nine in 10 households are forced to skip meals, sell belongings or take on debt to survive, the United Nations said on Wednesday, warning that mass returns are exacerbating the country’s worst crisis since the Islamic Emirate returned to power.

A United Nations Development Programme report said nearly one in 10 overseas Afghans has been forced back home, with more than 4.5 million returnees since 2023, mainly from Iran and Pakistan, swelling the population by 10%. On top of that, earthquakes, floods and drought have destroyed 8,000 homes and strained public services “beyond their limits,” Reuters reported.

QUAKES, FLOODS AND HUNGER

A survey of more than 48,000 households found that more than half of Afghanistan’s returnees have skipped medical care to buy food and 45% rely on open springs or unprotected wells for water.

Nearly 90% of returning Afghan families are in debt, owing $373 to $900, up to five times the average monthly income of $100 and nearly half of annual per-capita gross domestic product, the UNDP said.

In areas with high numbers of returnees, one teacher serves 70 to 100 students, 30% of children work and joblessness among returnees reaches 95%. The average monthly income is 6,623 Afghanis ($99.76), while rents have tripled.

The UNDP warned that without urgent support to strengthen livelihoods and services in high-return areas, overlapping crises of poverty, exclusion and migration will deepen.

It said sustaining aid is critical as donor pledges have plunged since 2021, covering only a fraction of the $3.1 billion that the UN sought for Afghanistan this year.

The Taliban government appealed for international humanitarian assistance after a deadly quake struck eastern Afghanistan in September and it has formally protested Pakistan’s mass expulsion of Afghan nationals, saying it is “deeply concerned” about their treatment.

WOMEN BEAR THE BRUNT

Participation by women in Afghanistan’s labour force has fallen to 6%, one of the lowest globally, and restrictions on movement have made it nearly impossible for women who head households to access jobs, education or healthcare.

Kanni Wignaraja, UN assistant secretary-general and UNDP regional director for Asia and the Pacific, said, “In some provinces one in four households depend on women as the main breadwinner, so when women are prevented from working, families, communities, the country lose out.”

Households headed by women, accounting for as many as 26% of returnee families in some districts, face the highest risk of food insecurity and secondary displacement.

The UNDP urged donors to allocate more resources and called on the Islamic Emirate authorities to lift restrictions on female aid staff.

“Cutting women out of frontline aid work means cutting off vital services for those who need them most,” Wignaraja said.