A UN report says drug seizures have soared in the West African Sahel region in recent years, indicating the conflict-ridden region is becoming an influential hotspot for trafficking
Embargoed until 1300 GMT Drug seizures soared in the West African Sahel region according to figures released Friday in a new U.N. report, indicating the conflict-ridden region is becoming an influential route for drug trafficking. In 2022, 1,466 kilograms, , of cocaine were seized in Mali, Chad, Burkina Faso and Niger compared to an average of 13 kilograms between 2013 and 2020 , said the report from the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime.
Increased trafficking networks in the region is spilling out onto local markets and leading to higher drug consumption, said Lucia Bird, director of the West Africa observatory of illicit economies at the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime. “We’ve had reports of rising crack cocaine consumption in Agadez, Niger driven by payment in kind,” said Bird.
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