HomeNewsBriefCan Colombia's New Anti-Drug Strategy Halt the Spread of Coca?
BRIEF

Can Colombia's New Anti-Drug Strategy Halt the Spread of Coca?

COCA / 2 SEP 2015 BY ELYSSA PACHICO EN

Colombia has announced a new anti-drug strategy emphasizing manual eradication of coca crops, but it may not be enough to rein in the country's flourishing coca production. 

Defense Minister Luis Carlos Villegas said a core focus of the plan would be increasing manual coca eradication in light of Colombia's decision to cease fumigating the crops by air

As a result, the government will increase the number of manual eradication teams from 16 to 60, reported El Tiempo

The plan also involves creating at least four command hubs in coca-rich zones, where the armed forces will collaborate with other agencies responsible for development projects.

According to El Tiempo, the Ministry of Defense is still researching ways to continue aerial fumigation without using glyphosate, a herbicide that the World Health Organization (WHO) has said may cause cancer.

InSight Crime Analysis

Colombia is currently struggling with rising rates of coca cultivation and cocaine production, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). It is doubtful that plans to increase manual eradication are enough to reverse this trend. 

Authorities have steadily increased their reliance on manual eradication versus fumigation over the past decade, as demonstrated by the chart below. However, in recent years they have been severely hindered by two obstacles; the landmines guerrilla groups and criminal organizations frequently plant around coca plantations, and mobilizations of coca growing communities preventing the advances of eradicators.   

15-09-03-Colombia-WolaCocaChart

Infographic by the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA)

In some ways, this new anti-drug strategy looks better suited for a post-conflict Colombia, in which the guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), who are the custodians of much of Colombia's coca, have committed to ceasing its involvement in the drug trade and helping to remove landmines. During the ongoing peace talks with the FARC, both the rebels and the government committed to a new drug policy that emphasizes manual eradication. The FARC and coca farmers have called for this agreement to be implemented even before the conflict has formally ended, and to some degree, that may already be happening. 

SEE ALSO:  Colombia News and Profiles

It is also possible this new strategy has less to do with appeasing the FARC and more to do with coming up with something -- anything -- that makes it look as though Colombia has a serious plan for slowing down cocaine production. But in this too, the government will likely fall short. Colombia generally produces less cocaine for every hectare of coca compared to Peru and Bolivia as its coca plants often do not reach full maturity. With aerial eradication out of the picture, Colombia's coca plants have a chance to mature fully, and next year may see the country's cocaine production rate go through the roof even without further increases in the number of hectares planted. 

share icon icon icon

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

What are your thoughts? Click here to send InSight Crime your comments.

We encourage readers to copy and distribute our work for non-commercial purposes, with attribution to InSight Crime in the byline and links to the original at both the top and bottom of the article. Check the Creative Commons website for more details of how to share our work, and please send us an email if you use an article.

Tags

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

Related Content

ARGENTINA / 8 FEB 2023

InSight Crime's 2022 Homicide Round-Up covers more countries than ever before, with a major expansion into nations of the Caribbean.

BOLIVIA / 3 MAR 2023

As the CITES treaty hits 50, we take a look at its successes, failures, and future challenges in reducing the…

COLOMBIA / 6 DEC 2021

A series of arrests have revealed that one of Colombia's dominant criminal groups has a strong foothold in Panama, including…

About InSight Crime

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime's Chemical Precursor Report Continues

19 MAY 2023

For the second week in a row, our investigation into the flow of precursor chemicals for the manufacture of synthetic drugs in Mexico has been cited by multiple regional media…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime’s Chemical Precursor Report Widely Cited

THE ORGANIZATION / 12 MAY 2023

We are proud to see that our recently published investigation into the supply chain of chemical precursors feeding Mexico’s synthetic drug production has been warmly received.

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime’s Paraguay Election Coverage Draws Attention 

5 MAY 2023

InSight Crime looked at the various anti-organized crime policies proposed by the candidates in Paraguay’s presidential election, which was won on April 30 by Santiago Peña. Our pre-election coverage was cited…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime Cited in OAS, CARICOM Reports

28 APR 2023

This week, InSight Crime’s work was cited nine times in a new report by the Organization of American States (OAS) titled “The Impact of Organized Crime on Women,…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime Staff Cited as Experts by International Media

21 APR 2023

This week, InSight Crime deputy editor, Juan Diego Posada, was interviewed by the Associated Press about connections between the ex-FARC mafia and Brazilian criminal groups, and…