Nigeria, traditionally considered as a key transit hub for drug trafficking, has gradually become a key producer, consumer, and distributor of illegal drugs. Different categories of drugs are produced, consumed and trafficked through the country. The types of drugs trafficked include cannabis, cocaine, heroin, and psychotropic substances including methamphetamine, tramadol, codeine, and diazepam. Cannabis is widely cultivated in different parts of the country and is used both for local consumption and export. Other drugs produced are methamphetamine and codeine containing cough syrups.
In 2019 the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) reported an almost 50 percent increase in seizure activity from the previous year. While the agency recorded a seizure of a total of 317, 764.85kgs of illicit drugs in 2018, in 2019, the agency seized 612,903.48kgs of illicit drugs, representing an increase of 48.15%. On 4 August 2022, the NDLEA destroyed 560,068.31414 kilograms of assorted illicit drugs, reportedly the largest cache of seized, illicit drugs to be destroyed in a single ceremony in its the 32-year history. Moreover, at least 20 clandestine laboratories have been dismantled including two “super-labs”, capable of producing many tons of methamphetamine per week. In the same week in August 2022, NDLEA discovered 2 methamphetamine production labs in Lagos and Anambra respectively.
Our work
UNODC has been providing technical, research and normative support to Nigeria to strengthen its drug control efforts. From 2012 to 2022 UNODC, with the funding support of the European Union, implemented a dedicated project to support Nigeria’s drug control efforts, adopting a balanced approach with a focus on support to policy and legislation development, inter-agency coordination, data collection and trend analysis, drug law enforcement capacity building, drug demand reduction and access and control of narcotics and psychotropic substances. This project provided dedicated capacity building and operational support to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), which has the mandate to lead, coordinate and implement Nigeria’s drug control response.
Intelligence-based investigations and prosecution of drug cases are key to increasing the success rate of NDLEA’s prosecution activities. Foundational evidence, such as the actual drugs and/or chemicals seized is generally required for a successful prosecution. To determine its evidentiary value, the seized drugs must be analyzed and documented by an accredited laboratory, which meets contemporary forensic science standards.
UNODC supports Member States to improve their forensic science standards to combat drugs and crime, through its Laboratory and Scientific Services (LSS) which provides scientific and forensic services to almost 300 labs in 80 countries.
This programme ensures worldwide availability and accessibility of internationally accepted standards for forensic best practices. It also improves national forensic capacity and capabilities to meet internationally accepted standards of performance and promotes the use of scientific and forensic data in strategic operations, policy and decision-making processes.
Supporting countries with preliminary field identification of drugs and precursors most encountered in the illicit traffic, the UNODC Laboratory develops and produces, in-house drug and precursor field test kits intended to provide law enforcement officers with rapid and simple colour tests for presumptive identification.
Further, to support forensic chemical analysis laboratories, the UNODC LSS provides comprehensive spectrum of capacity building and technical assistance on drug identification and analysis including the provision of advanced drug identification equipment and associated training as well as safe handling training to mitigate and handle cases of exposure to highly toxic substances.
Our Partners
Key partners for UNODC's work in this area include, among others, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency and its parent Ministry, the Federal Ministry of Justice and various law enforcement agencies and civil society organizations.
Our Projects
UNODC is currently implementing the Project “Strengthening the Forensic Chemical Analysis Capacity of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA). The project’s objective is to ensure that NDLEA has increased institutional capacity in forensic evidence collection, management, and analysis through modernized laboratory facilities and equipment, training, and access to standardized practice guidelines, which all together contribute to improved cooperation with international partners and more successful intelligence driven investigations and prosecutions of Nigerian based drug cartels and their facilitators, more effectively combatting transnational criminal activity.
This project is funded by the United States International Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) and implemented by UNODC.
Key achievements:
