China aids Myanmar for poppy-substitute program

The Chinese government has donated 500 tons of rice and 500,000 yuan (62,500 US dollars) worth of anti-malaria medicines to Myanmar, as part of a program to help Myanmar with its poppy-substitute program.

The aid was formally handed over on Tuesday in Laukkai, capital of Shan State Special Region-1.

With the support of China, a major destination for the illegal produce of the "Golden Triangle" poppy cultivation area, foreign governments, and international organizations, the Myanmar government has increased efforts to carry out its opium-substitute program.

This has resulted in large reductions in the acreage of poppy cultivation and in the incomes of poppy growers, as well as a shortage of grain supply in north Myanmar.

At the request of Myanmar government, the Chinese government agreed to give 10,000 tons of rice to the Myanmar government and 5 million yuan (625,000 U.S. dollars) worth of goods to Kokang region in north Myanmar.

Source: Xinhua