Drugs and (Dis)order Questionnaire Interviews on Crossborder Trading in Nangarhar and Nimroz, 2018-2019

Collection of questionnaire interviews carried out as part of the GCRF Drugs and (dis)order project in the borderlands of Nangarhar and Nimroz, Afghanistan. The purpose of the interviews was to explore the production, trade and movement of several key commodities ‒ legal and illegal ‒ like minerals, drugs, fertilizer, transit goods and fuel, and the impact on the political and economic stability of borderlands. Nangarhar borders Pakistan and Nimroz borders Iran and Pakistan. The production, processing and consumption of illicit drugs is just one of a set of activities and means of livelihood in these borderland areas; and often only one of many that are deemed illegal. Therefore, the research adopted an approach that "talked around drugs not about drugs", thereby positioning the illicit drugs economy within broader questions about the livelihoods and the political economy of those living in these border areas and avoiding the kind of direct questions that often lead to the kind of aggrandizement, denial and the leveling of accusations of drugs trafficking at political opponents that has been seen in much of the official and scholarly literature.

Drugs & (dis)order is a Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) project generating new evidence on how to transform illicit drug economies into peace economies in Afghanistan, Colombia and Myanmar. By 2030, more than 50% of the world’s poor will live in fragile and conflict-affected states. And many of today’s armed conflicts are fuelled by illicit drug economies in borderland regions. Trillions of dollars have been spent on the War on Drugs, but securitised approaches have failed. In fact, they often increase state fragility and adversely affect the health and livelihoods of communities and households. In light of these failures, there’s increasing recognition that drug policies need to be more pro-poor and aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). But the evidence base for this policy reform is patchy, politicised and contested. Drugs & (dis)order is helping to generate pro-poor policy solutions to transform illicit economies into peace economies. To do this we will: (1) Generate a robust evidence base on illicit drug economies and their effects on armed conflict, public health and livelihoods. (2) Identify new approaches and policy solutions to build more inclusive development and sustainable livelihoods in drugs affected contexts. (3) Build a global network of researchers and institutions in Afghanistan, Colombia, Myanmar and the UK to continue this work.

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