Ousmane Touré, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) country representative for Nigeria, has revealed that drug trafficking generates an estimated $400 billion annually for criminal networks operating in the Sahel and Lake Chad Basin regions.
Touré disclosed this during a panel session on curbing illicit drug trafficking and drug abuse to prevent violent extremism at the fifth Lake Chad Governors’ Forum held on Friday. January 31, in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital.
He emphasized that the massive scale of the illicit drug trade drives a range of criminal activities, including arms smuggling, human trafficking, and money laundering. He noted that criminal organizations involved in drug trafficking are diversifying their operations, creating intricate value chains that connect the drug trade with other transnational organized crimes.
“These networks need a value chain,” Touré said, explaining that activities such as the exploitation of natural resources, including gold mining, often overlap with drug trafficking operations in conflict-affected areas.
Touré also highlighted the difficulty in securing evidence of links between drug trafficking and terrorism, calling for more investment in research and evidence-based studies to address the issue.
He advocated for stronger border control measures, enhanced regional cooperation, and institutional reforms to tackle corruption within law enforcement agencies as part of efforts to combat the problem.