There are growing concerns that criminal gangs have infiltrated maritime supply chains and are now operating ‘legitimate’ forwarding businesses that move significant amounts of illegal drugs via commercial vessels.
World Customs Organisation study (WCO) findings revealed that 70 per cent of maritime drug seizures had a trusted insider link.
The study states: “The modern, globalised cocaine trade is backed by a highly mature industry and well-established supply chain, capable of mass production and maintaining steady flows of cocaine to illicit consumer markets globally.”
The WCO further stated that the failure of the maritime industry and regulators to develop a more effective system of inspecting cargo containers gives drug smugglers easy access to their illegitimate trade.
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) had said it uncovered cocaine weighing 25.5kg onboard a Brazilian ship, MV San Anthonio, in Apapa port and another 1,187kg. Canadian loud in
The NCS earlier intercepted a N29.4 billion cocaine shipment at the Port and Terminal Multiservices Limited (PTML).
The Sea Empowerment and Research Centre (SEREC) raised the alarm over the rise in illicit drug trafficking and fake drug importation via the maritime domain, warning that such could pose a grave national security and public health threat.
SEREC, in a position paper signed by its head of research, Dr Eugene Nweke, said despite the commendable efforts of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the NCS, the problem persists due to systemic loopholes and transnational criminal networks.
According to the group’s assessment, Nigeria remains both a transit and consumer nation for narcotics, with porous borders, entrenched corruption, socioeconomic pressures and weak institutional capacity fuelling the surge in trafficking and abuse through the maritime supply chain.
The research body stated that smugglers continue to exploit surveillance gaps and compromised officers, while economic despair, particularly among youths, drives participation in the drug trade and consumption.
The report also identifies underfunding of regulatory agencies, outdated inspection technologies, inadequate public awareness, and limited community engagement as critical weaknesses that undermine national response efforts.
To curb the growing threat, SEREC outlined a comprehensive reform blueprint anchored on technology, intelligence, institutional reforms, and community involvement.
The recommendations include the deployment of modern scanning and surveillance systems at borders, airports, and seaports; strengthened intelligence-sharing frameworks; and the periodic rotation of enforcement officers to reduce corruption.
SEREC further called for the establishment of special narcotics courts to fast-track prosecution, increased budgetary support for NDLEA and NAFDAC, and the creation of a national drug tracking system to monitor pharmaceuticals from importation to distribution.
The research centre emphasised the need for enhanced regional and international collaboration, especially with ECOWAS and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), to boost intelligence exchange and coordinated operations against transnational drug syndicates.
SEREC warned that Nigeria must transition from reactive to preventive governance, prioritising safety, accountability and institutional synergy to safeguard lives, restore public confidence and protect the nation’s moral and developmental integrity.
The group stressed that only an integrated, proactive approach can stem the tide of illicit drug proliferation and its attendant socio-economic consequences.
“The time has come for decisive reforms, community participation and technological modernisation in managing the war against drugs,” SEREC stated.
