Nigeria and Ghana have stepped up joint efforts against West Africa’s drug trafficking networks, signing a new agreement to coordinate intelligence and enforcement operations.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency and Ghana’s Narcotics Control Commission formalized the partnership Tuesday at the NDLEA headquarters in Abuja with a Memorandum of Understanding aimed at dismantling transnational drug cartels.
NDLEA Chairman Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Retd) said the pact marked a shift from diplomatic goodwill to structured, aggressive cooperation.
“Let this serve as a warning to those who seek to destabilize our societies with illicit drugs: Nigeria and Ghana stand united,” Marwa said.
He added that intelligence-led operations and joint interdiction strategies would significantly shrink the space for criminal networks.
The MoU establishes a formal framework for cooperation on the production and trafficking of psychotropic substances, precursor chemicals, and related financial crimes including money laundering.
Marwa said the agreement would enable intensified joint training, digital forensics collaboration, and coordinated operations across the West African corridor.
He described the relationship between both agencies as evolving from strong bilateral ties into a “structured, aggressive, and unified front” against drug barons.
Ghana’s Narcotics Control Commission Director-General, Brig. Gen. Maxwell Obuba Mantey, acknowledged Nigeria’s leadership in regional security and said the visit was aimed at strengthening existing ties.
He warned that drug trafficking in West Africa is growing more complex, with traffickers adopting advanced methods, expanding maritime routes, and increasing production of synthetic drugs. Ghana, he noted, is shifting from primarily a transit hub to facing rising domestic drug use and distribution.
“No single country can effectively address this threat in isolation,” Mantey said, stressing the need for practical cooperation in operations, intelligence sharing, and capacity building.
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He added that the success of the partnership would depend on concrete implementation through coordinated enforcement and sustained collaboration.
The meeting, attended by senior officials from both countries and representatives of the Ghanaian High Commission, signals a broader regional push to counter organized drug networks.
Officials say the alliance is critical as drug crime increasingly threatens security, governance, and public health across West Africa.
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