NDLEA Raises Alarm as 15 Million Nigerians Use Illicit Drugs

The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brigadier-General Buba Marwa (rtd.), has revealed that about 15 million Nigerians aged between 15 and 64 currently use illicit drugs.

Marwa described the figure as alarming, noting that it represents nearly three times the global average, with one in every seven Nigerians within the age bracket involved in drug consumption.

Speaking during a courtesy visit to Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa in Akure, Marwa disclosed that Ondo State remains Nigeria’s highest producer of cannabis due to favourable climate and soil conditions.

He cited the 2018 United Nations drug use survey, which puts drug prevalence in Ondo State at 17 per cent, compared to 33 per cent in Lagos State and 24 per cent in Oyo State, warning that drug abuse continues to fuel criminality and insecurity.

Marwa also disclosed that NDLEA is conducting scientific research through the Nigerian Academy of Science on cannabis-extracted oil for medicinal purposes, stressing that any policy decision on controlled cultivation would be strictly evidence-based.