TOKYO: The Japanese government said Thursday it will provide 1.5 billion yen to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime to support efforts against drugs in Afghanistan.

Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly signed an agreement on the grant in aid at the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo.

In Afghanistan, once known as the world’s leading supplier of such narcotics as opium and heroin, opium poppy cultivation is still active.

The aid will be used for promoting the production of wheat and other alternative crops, government officials said.

JIJI Press