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By: Isaac Amo-Kyereme
"The global situation of drug trafficking in Africa has become worse in recent years especially with an explosion of cocaine trade between south America and Africa".
Jean-Michel Louboutin, executive director of Interpol said recently when he opened the 19th Interpol African Regional Conference being held in Arusha in Tanzania. INTERPOL is the world's largest international police organization, with 186 member countries. Created in 1923, it facilitates cross-border police co-operation, and supports and assists all organizations, authorities and services whose mission is to prevent or combat international crime.
Representatives from over 150 African police services attended this conference with the sole of defining strategies that will foster an increased co-operation to combat drug trafficking on the continent.
With Africa's long and porous borders coupled with the problem of meager resources that make it almost impracticable to do effective law enforcement in all potential entry and exit points, the scale of drug production and usage has become alarming.
According to the Mr Louboutin, in 2006, the world heroin production was estimated at 606 tons, cocaine production at 984 tons, and cannabis at 42,000 tons. With the exception of cocaine, drug production has risen by about 50% in the space of 10 years.
In 2005, it was estimated that there were over 200 million drug users worldwide. The African continent, viewed as a whole, is a region of production, consumption and transit for drugs.
Although the problem varies enormously according to the type of drug involved and from one region to another, the overall drug-trafficking situation in Africa has considerably worsened these past years, particularly with the explosion in cocaine trafficking between South America and Africa. For example, West Africa has become a hub for the traffic in cocaine between South America and Europe, alongside the more traditional trafficking routes via the Caribbean.
In June, Time Magazine quoted a senior drugs intelligence officer at Interpol as saying that drug barons now export between 200,000 and 300,000 kilograms of cocaine each year through Africa to Europe.
Senegal, Niger, Mauritania, Nigeria and a host of other West African countries have intercepted drugs in transit to Europe at various times.
The recent arrest of two British teenagers in Ghana as well as the seizure of a haul of drugs in Senegal and serious drug use and export of drugs in Guinea Bissau brings to the fore the need for a much concerted effort amongst all police agencies on the continent to wipe out this menace.
Mr Louboutin was confident the meeting will find new ways to help African police fight drug trafficking and he said that during the past three months alone, cocaine seizures totaling nearly 7 000kg have been reported to Interpol by police forces across West Africa. In east Africa the most trafficked drug in heroine, in southern Africa there is more trade in synthetic drugs.
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