Opium production in Afghanistan increased by 87 percent to record level of 9,000 tonnes, the United Nations said on Wednesday.

AVA- The rise in production of opium comes as area under cultivation increased to a record 328,000 hectares, up 63 percent compared with last year, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime said in a survey report.

“Increased insurgency and funding to terrorist groups is likely within Afghanistan while more high quality, low cost heroin will reach consumer markets across the world, leading to increased consumption,” UNODC said.

According to the report, the average yield per hectare was also boosted by 15 percent since last year.

Based on the report, the number of poppy-free provinces in the country decreased from 13 to 10, as Ghazni, Samangan and Nuristan lost the status.

Helmand accounted for about half of the total increase with cultivated areas increasing by 79 percent to 63,700 hectares.

“It is high time for the international community and Afghanistan to reprioritize drug control, and to acknowledge that every nation has a shared responsibility for this global problem,” said Yury Fedotov, the executive director of UNODC.