The Politics and Economics of Drug Production on the Pakistan Afghanistan Border

This important study contains a detailed socio-economic and political description of a region where opium and heroin are both produced and consumed. By carefully relating drug production, trade and consumption to a relatively inaccessible area on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, the book teaches us not only about the area - itself fascinating enough, particularly since it came into global prominence following the terrorist attack of 11 September 2001 - but also about the global dimensions of the problem.
The book provides an ethnography of drug production in the tribal areas of north-west Pakistan and analyses the key socio-economic aspects of drug production. It also considers the role of major intelligence agencies in the military use of the drug, with particular reference to the Iranian and Afghan conflicts. Much that is revealed in this study applies also to other less developed countries where drug production is of economic importance. Proposing a viable policy for the global community to tackle the problem, Amir Zada Asad reaches out to teachers and students in many social science disciplines, to social welfare and medical professionals, as well as to anti-narcotics practitioners and to campaigners and researchers alike.