- NDLEA records 38,242 arrests, seizes 5.8mkg of drugs, secures 6,232 convictions in 21 months
Nigeria has called for a coordinated global offensive against drug cartels and illicit financial networks, urging countries to strengthen intelligence-sharing, disrupt criminal proceeds and increase investment in drug-control institutions, particularly in developing nations.
The call was made by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the ongoing 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, where Nigeria presented its evolving drug-control strategy and achievements in combating illicit drug trafficking and substance abuse.
Delivering Nigeria’s statement on Monday under the theme, “Restoring Trust, Managing Transformation: A United Nations that Delivers for All,” the NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), represented by the agency’s Secretary, Shadrach Haruna, warned that criminal organisations were exploiting jurisdictional gaps and weaknesses in international cooperation to expand the global drug trade.
Marwa said Nigeria had transformed its drug-control framework from a predominantly enforcement-driven model into an integrated, intelligence-led and people-centred system combining law enforcement, public health interventions, technology, financial investigations, alternative livelihoods and international cooperation.
He explained that the transformation was necessary because drug trafficking networks had become increasingly sophisticated, exploiting digital technology, cross-border financial channels and vulnerable communities to sustain their operations.
“Trafficking networks have become more sophisticated, technology has opened new channels for illicit activity, criminal proceeds move rapidly across borders, and drug dependence continues to affect individuals, families and communities,” he said.
According to him, Nigeria had consequently expanded its focus beyond drug seizures and arrests to target the criminal networks, illicit profits and underlying vulnerabilities that sustain the drug economy.
NDLEA records major enforcement gains
The agency disclosed that between January 2025 and September 2026, it arrested 38,242 suspects, seized more than 5.8 million kilogrammes of illicit drugs valued at over N2.5 trillion and secured 6,232 convictions.
Within the same period, more than 16,303 people received counselling, treatment or rehabilitation services, while prevention and sensitisation campaigns reached millions of Nigerians.
Marwa said the figures demonstrated the scale of Nigeria’s response to the drug menace, stressing, however, that the effectiveness of drug-control operations should not be assessed solely by the number of arrests or the volume of seized substances.
He maintained that sustainable progress depended on dismantling major trafficking organisations, disrupting organised criminal structures and tracing the financial networks that enabled drug cartels to operate.
“The real measure of success is not only the volume of drugs seized or the number of arrests made, but the extent to which we dismantle the structures, profits and vulnerabilities that sustain the trade,” he said.
The NDLEA chief argued that targeting the financial foundations of criminal organisations was critical to weakening their operational capacity and preventing them from rebuilding their networks after enforcement operations.
Nigeria promotes alternative livelihoods
Marwa also highlighted Nigeria’s Alternative Development initiative, currently being piloted in three communities in Ondo State, as part of efforts to address the economic drivers of illicit drug cultivation.
The programme seeks to encourage communities involved in illicit cannabis cultivation to transition to legitimate agricultural production and sustainable livelihood opportunities.
He said the initiative reflected the agency’s understanding that enforcement alone could not eliminate illicit cultivation without addressing the economic circumstances that made it attractive to affected communities.
“Sustainable drug control requires more than removing an illicit crop. It requires credible economic alternatives that strengthen food security, community resilience and national security,” he said.
The programme is intended to demonstrate how legitimate economic opportunities can complement law enforcement, reduce dependence on illicit cultivation and strengthen community participation in drug-control efforts.
Digital reforms strengthen drug control
The NDLEA chairman also cited the agency’s Drug Integrity Test and Visa E-Administration System as examples of the application of digital technology to improve efficiency, accessibility, transparency and integrity in public administration.
According to him, these initiatives form part of broader institutional reforms being consolidated under Nigeria’s National Drug Control Master Plan 2026–2030.
The master plan is structured around six strategic pillars: drug supply reduction; drug demand reduction; access to controlled medicines; governance and coordination; alternative development; and disruption of the illicit drug economy.
The framework seeks to establish a more comprehensive response that addresses drug production, trafficking, consumption, treatment, institutional coordination and the financial systems sustaining organised criminal activity.
Call for stronger international cooperation
Nigeria urged UN member states to establish stronger mechanisms for timely and reliable intelligence-sharing, warning that delays and information gaps allowed trafficking networks to move drugs, money and personnel across national borders with increasing ease.
It also called for intensified international action against illicit financial flows through improved financial investigations, asset tracing and asset recovery.
The country further advocated expanded investment in drug-use prevention, treatment, rehabilitation and reintegration programmes, emphasising that public health interventions must complement enforcement operations.
Nigeria also urged governments and international partners to provide greater support for Alternative Development programmes, particularly in communities seeking to abandon illicit cultivation, to ensure that affected populations had sustainable sources of legitimate income.
On institutional capacity, the country called for increased investment in law enforcement agencies, noting that drug cartels were deploying sophisticated technologies, logistics networks and financial systems that required equally advanced investigative and operational capabilities.
It specifically appealed for sustained international assistance to developing countries through technology transfer, specialised training, improved forensic capabilities, treatment infrastructure and technical support for drug-control institutions.
Nigeria pledges continued global collaboration
Marwa described Nigeria’s experience as an ongoing reform process rather than a completed model, expressing the country’s willingness to share lessons, learn from other jurisdictions and deepen cooperation with the United Nations, member states and international partners.
He stressed that international commitments must translate into practical interventions capable of weakening trafficking networks, protecting vulnerable populations and reducing the social and economic consequences of drug abuse.
“Our objective is to move from commitment to implementation, from cooperation to collective action and from transformation to measurable delivery,” he said.
The NDLEA maintained that Nigeria’s experience underscored the need for a coordinated global strategy integrating law enforcement, public health, economic empowerment, digital innovation, financial intelligence and international cooperation.
It warned that criminal networks would continue to exploit vulnerable communities, institutional weaknesses and gaps in cross-border collaboration unless governments adopted a sustained and comprehensive approach to dismantling the illicit drug economy.
