Colombian government and rebels announce cocaine crop plan

Colombia has announced a plan to eradicate vast
crops of coca leaf, the raw material for cocaine.
The Farc rebel group relied on cocaine production
to fund its insurgency, and controlled much of the
industry.
But a joint programme between rebels and the
government will offer farmers monthly payments if
they voluntarily destroy their crops.
They will also be offered loans and guidance to
plant alternatives such as fruit trees and cacao.
The crop substitution programme was agreed as
part of Colombia's peace accord, which was
finally ratified in December.
The Colombian official responsible for the
programme, Rafael Pardo, said the government
would invest $340m (£271m), which would
benefit 50,000 families.
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Last year, President Juan Manuel Santos decided
to suspend US-backed aerial fumigation of illegal
coca crops.
The government has set a goal of destroying
100,000 hectares of coca this year, and has yet
to rule out other methods to bring coca levels
down.
But the preferred strategy appears to be winning
over the estimated 64,000 peasant families
dependent on the coca trade.
"This is much more cost-efficient and furthermore
ensures that territories are transformed and
people's lives are changed," Mr Pardo said.
Each family would receive a monthly stipend of
around $350 (£280) as well as loans, subsidies,
and technical assistance.
The programme is supported by the Farc and will
initially focus on 40 municipalities responsible for
more than half of Colombia's coca production.
During the armed conflict, the Farc initially taxed
farmers producing coca in areas under its control,
but eventually dominated trafficking in those
areas.
As the Farc leave these regions to comply with
the peace accord, the concern is that other armed
groups including paramilitary and other crime
gangs will try to replace them and take over the
trade.