Drug Control

Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the joint U.S.-Mexico opium poppy and marijuana aerial eradication program in terms of the extent to which: (1) the program reduced the Mexican poppy and marijuana crops; (2) Mexico effectively used U.S.-provided aircraft and other resources; and (3) formal bilateral agreements provided the ongoing cooperation needed to expeditiously eliminate opium poppies and marijuana in Mexico.

GAO found that: (1) although initially the aerial eradication program significantly reduced opium poppy and marijuana cultivation in Mexico, farmers developed new techniques to make such eradication difficult; (2) Mexico has reemerged as a prominent marijuana supplier; and (3) the gap between crop cultivation and eradication will probably continue to widen. GAO also found that Mexico's Office of the Attorney General, which administered the aerial eradication program: (1) underused U.S. aircraft, primarily because of maintenance deficiencies and an insufficient number of pilots; and (2) disagreed with the United States and contractors as to the cause of and responsibility for correcting deficiencies. In addition, GAO found that U.S. and Mexican officials: (1) agreed that the program needed additional aircraft, but purchased them without a bilateral analysis of the need; (2) lacked formal bilateral agreements addressing the frequency or scope of aerial surveys, annual eradication targets, or program validation and evaluation; and (3) failed to address problems involving insufficient spare parts, low pilot salaries, and inadequate program monitoring.

Recommendations

Our recommendations from this work are listed below with a Contact for more information. Status will change from "In process" to "Open," "Closed - implemented," or "Closed - not implemented" based on our follow up work.

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