The Golden Crescent is the name given to one of Asia's two principal areas of illicit opium production (with the other being the Golden Triangle). Located at the crossroads of Central, South, and Western Asia, this space covers the mountainous peripheries of Afghanistan and Pakistan, extending into eastern Iran.

In 2007, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) heroin production estimates for the past 10 years showed significant changes in the primary source areas. In 1991, Afghanistan became the world's primary opium producer, with a yield of 1,782 metric tons (U.S. State Department estimates), surpassing Myanmar, formerly the world leader in opium production. The decrease in heroin production from Myanmar is the result of several years of unfavorable growing conditions and new government policies of forced eradication. Afghan heroin production increased during the same time frame, with a notable decrease in 2001 allegedly as a result of the Taliban's fatwa against heroin production. Afghanistan has produced over 90% of the world's illicit opium in the recent past. In addition to opiates, Afghanistan was also the world's largest producer of hashish during that time. Opium production and trafficking are known to have funded the Taliban's military activities and insurgency.