Caught between conflict and survival, Myanmar's displaced communities are turning to poppy farming, fuelling a booming opium trade in the war-torn nation.

Scraping opium resin off a seedpod in Myanmar's remote poppy fields, displaced farmer Aung Hla describes the narcotic crop as his only prospect in a country made barren by conflict.The 35-year-old was a rice farmer when the junta seized power in a 2021 coup,

The country's opiate economy — including the value of domestic consumption as well as exports abroad — is estimated to be between $589 million and $1.57 billion.