Drug Traffickers Exploiting Technology to Expand Operations – NACOC Boss Warns
The Director-General of the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC), Major General Maxwell Obuba Mantey, has warned that global drug trafficking networks are growing more sophisticated and are exploiting technology and cyberspace to expand their illicit operations across borders.
Speaking at the opening of the Africa–South Asia Inter-Regional Workshop on “Strengthening Cooperation Against New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) and Synthetic Opioid Trafficking”, Maj. Gen. Mantey said criminal organisations are taking advantage of vulnerabilities within countries to strengthen their operations.
“Ghana is experiencing a trend where these criminal networks are using cyberspace to trade in narcotics,” he stated.
He stressed the urgent need for stronger regional and international cooperation to counter the evolving threat.
The NACOC boss called on participating countries to deepen collaboration through timely intelligence sharing, exchange of best practices, and coordinated enforcement to dismantle transnational drug trafficking networks operating in Africa and South Asia.
Ghana Law Enforcement Advisor for the US Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), Mr Chip Duncan, said the world is now confronted with a drug threat that is evolving faster than ever.
“Traditionally, we dealt with plant-based drugs that followed predictable patterns. Today, we face a synthetic revolution,” he said.
“Over 1,200 new psychoactive substances (NPS) have been identified globally. These are chemicals designed to mimic illegal drugs while evading current laws,” Mr Duncan noted.
He added that West Africa is already the world’s largest market for diverted tramadol, with more than 180 tons seized every year. More alarming, he said, is the recent detection of nitazenes, a synthetic opioid that can be 40 times stronger than heroin.
“These substances don’t just fuel crime; they kill your citizens and devastate your communities,” he warned.
According to him, criminal networks are highly organised and tech-savvy. They use maritime and air corridors to link South Asia, particularly India and Sri Lanka, to East and West Africa, creating a global trafficking chain that exploits weak points, limited lab capacity, outdated laws, and porous borders.
The four-day workshop brings together experts and law enforcement agencies from across Africa and South Asia to strengthen partnerships, enhance real-time intelligence sharing, and exchange experiences in addressing the growing threat posed by NPS and synthetic opioids.
It is sponsored by the US Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) and facilitated in collaboration with the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), NACOC, and the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) Ghana.
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