Colombia signs $300m UN deal to fight cocaine production

Colombia has signed a $300m (£230m) agreement with the United Nations aimed at reducing the production of cocaine.

Farmers who switch from growing coca - the raw material used to make cocaine - to safer crops will be compensated. The head of the UN's Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said it was an "opportunity to turn the tide against Colombia's coca cultivation".

Colombia is ranked as one of the main drug-growing nations in the world by the UNODC. Speaking in Vienna, the head of the UNODC, Yury Fedotov, said: "This historic agreement is a unique opportunity to turn the tide against Colombia's coca cultivation and help farmers embrace alternative development.

"The pursuit of peace requires tangible solutions to the crimes that fuel and feed conflict." Currently, farmers earn $300 (£230) a month for every hectare of coca they grow.

This initiative will provide compensation to farmers if they revert to producing safer crops, such as coffee and cacao.

Currently, farmers earn $300 (£230) a month for every hectare of coca they grow. This initiative will provide compensation to farmers if they revert to producing safer crops, such as coffee and cacao.

UCJ, UNILORIN.