In june of 2009, the usa department of trafficking in persons report released a full report documenting at least 30,000 children working as porters, fishermen and others primarily being used for sexual tourism. First, the investigatory capability of local law enforcement is no match for the sophistication of the. Drug abuse in ghana, causes, effects and solutions. Taking up the topic, the government organized a high. Many ghanaian children are trafficked from their home villages to work in the fishing industry. The development response to drug trafficking in africa usaid. This is basically what giaba is focused on at the moment. Obviously, one of the ills plaguing ghana today is the misuse of drugs specifically tramadol and other forms of substances which are either poorly regulated or banned for use in the country. Drug trafficking is a major source of revenue for organised crime groups, many of whom are involved in other forms of serious crime such as firearms, modern slavery and immigration crime. A human trafficking unit is being established at the cid headquarters. This article interrogates the emergence of drug trafficking in contemporary. Though drug trafficking is a global phenomenon, the scope of this study focuses primarily on impacts of drug trafficking on ghanas national security. Drug trafficking, violence and politics in northern mali.
It is important to note, however, that it is not the quantity of trafficking in any given country that is being evaluated. Economically, the influx of drug and other dirty monies into the local market can seem like a. Drug trafficking and counternarcotics policies in mali and guinea mali pdf. Drug trafficking is all about money and instant wealth. However, the ramifications of legal change could be felt beyond the country as. Center for 21st century security and intelligence latin america initiative crime, violence, and politics. Unodc is registering new alarming trends on drug trafficking in west and central. Drug trafficking is a global illicit trade involving the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of substances which are subject to drug prohibition laws. Fully eradicating the problem is unrealistic in the short term, but mali and its partners should work to demilitarise drug trafficking. Ghana has been ranked the third cocaine transit destination in africa behind nigeria and south africa respectively. Well endowed with natural resources, ghana has roughly twice the per capita output of the poorest countries in west africa. Unodc is continuously monitoring and researching global illicit drug markets in order to gain a. Introduction in less than one and a half decades west africa has become a major transit and repackaging hub for cocaine and heroin flowing from the latin american and asian producing areas to european markets. In west africa, countries such as senegal, cape verde, or ghana have.
The crisis of drug trafficking in west africa is gaining attention, in the media and. Request pdf diaspora and drug trafficking in west africa. Conflict among drug traffickers in northern mali generates levels of violence unparalleled in the region and hinders the implementation of the 2015 intermalian peace agreements. Mar 14, 2019 the term drug trafficking refers to the process by which individuals provide illegal drugs to the public. Drug trafficking and threats to national and regional security in. For this reason, the government of ghana must get a solution for substance abuse and prevention to save the young generation.
The trafficking in persons report recognizes the trafficking problems we all know exist in ghana forced labor, child labor and sex trafficking of children and adults. African journal of educational studies in mathematics and sciences vol. Though drug trafficking is a global phenomenon, the scope of this study focuses primarily on impacts of drug trafficking on ghana s national security. West africa the regions pivotal role in international drug. The research findings in benin, ghana and senegal show that the drug market is thriving with the number of people who use drugs on the increase. Drug trafficking and the threat to nigerias national. The eu support, which is being given to ghana, forms part of a broader project, dubbed. Illegal drugs use and trafficking in ghana, previously the gold coast, may date back to antiquity, but the genesis of the current trend and situation is usually traced. Drug trafficking is an ever mounting international security problem. According to sylvia hinsonekong, executive director, rescue foundation, trafficking of women from ghana into sexual commercial exploitation in europe is not as widespread as trafficking of. The west africa commission on dr ugs convened by kofi annan, the west africa commission wacd on drugs comprises a group of distinguished west africans from the worlds of politics, civil society, health, security and the judiciary. Patience quaye of the antihuman trafficking unit of ghana police service. Child trafficking in ghana united nations office on. Interests though the majority of the drugs transiting west africa do not come to the united states, the proceeds flow to the same south american drugtrafficking organizations that traffic drugs to the united states.
Ghana and west africa within the context of a global political economy, situated within a. West africa the regions pivotal role in international. Anti human trafficking unit ahtu ghana police service. Drug trafficking and threats to national and regional security in west africa 1. Latam drug traffickers set up in guineabissau, expand in.
At its thirtyeighth session in 1995, the commission was presented with an earlier version ecn. The drug industry is often defined by the extent of its international distribution networks and how these change over time. Between 2006 and 2008, significant drug seizures were reported. Ncc aims to decriminalise drug consumption in ghana. Another of the main security threats arising from the growing incidence of drug trafficking in the west africa subregion stems from the ability of criminal networks and illicit funding to infiltrate security and government agencies, transform or influence the motivations of its members, reorient objectives towards the spoils of drug trafficking activity thus influencing. Action against drug trafficking therefore has a much wider disruptive impact on organised criminal activity. More worrisome is the fact that crime rates seem to be increasing rather than decreasing. Ghana and sierra leone in the drug trade link their participation to development. These issues have been widely investigated within the confines of the border or transnational security situation in ghana sosuh, 2011. Nigerian organizations and routes spread to ghana in the early 1980s and quickly expanded as nigerian drug traffickers began to be convicted and punished for drug trafficking and ghana became a safer, alternative network. This years tip report notes the government of ghana s increased efforts to combat human trafficking in 2017, including. Florence gbolu, journalists for human rights jhr, ghana, august 8, 2006. According to the 2016 world drug report by united nations office on drugs and crime unodc, the illegal shipment of cocaine comes from south america en route to europe and brazil.
Drug transit through africa follows different routes depending on the drug trafficked, but. Even so, ghana remains heavily dependent on international financial and technical assistance. The catholic archdiocese of accra, ghana, has made available a 40bed facility, the house of st. Ghana ranked 3rd highest cocaine transit point in africa. Support to ecowas regional action plan on illicit drug trafficking, organized crime related to it and drug abuse in west africa, being implemented in five ecowas states, including sierra leone, senegal, and togo. The rising drug trafficking threat a rise in illicit drug trafficking in africa in recent years has drawn the attention of u.
Recovery in ghana national institute on drug abuse nida. Secretary of state john kerry released the 2016 trafficking in persons report at the u. Jun 25, 2018 20180625 obviously, one of the ills plaguing ghana today is the misuse of drugs specifically. The 2016 tip report includes narratives for 188 countries and territories. Using security personnel from narcotic control board nacob and ghana police service gps, simple random sampling technique was employed in sampling 230 respondents for the questionnaire survey. This article interrogates the emergence of drug trafficking in contemporary ghana and west africa within the context of a global political economy, situated within a deeper historical perspective.
West africa the regions pivotal role in international drug trafficking 21 they become a transnational issue. Latam drug traffickers set up in guineabissau, expand in africa. Unodc is registering new alarming trends on drug trafficking in west and central africa executive director yuri fedotov. In ghana, despite the promulgation of the human trafficking act 2005, act 694, a significant number of people in some communities actively engage in human trafficking. Through the efforts of these institutions a number of arrests and seizures have been. Interests though the majority of the drugs transiting west africa do not come to the united states, the proceeds flow to the same south american drug trafficking organizations that traffic drugs to the united states. Guineabissau may be africas first narcostate, but worrying signs in mali, the gambia, ghana, nigeria, mozambique, kenya, and elsewhere indicate that this is not the only country struggling against the hollowing effects of drug trafficking on security, development, and. These child trafficking in ghana statistics in ghana is not something new. Research conducted for this guide reveals how the drug trade undermines these goals both directly and indirectly. Policy congressional research service 1 introduction. Drug trafficking often complicates and extends armed conflicts by providing revenue needed to purchase weapons, corrupting law enforcement and military officers, and diverting.
Introduction in less than one and a half decades west africa has become a major transit and repackaging hub for cocaine and heroin flowing from the latin american and asian producing areas to. Understanding the nature and threats of drug trafficking to. Sadly, in ghana, it has both cross border and domestic human trafficking, expressing worry that trafficking in persons is the second largest criminal activity in the world, following illegal drugs just in front of illegal arms, says csupt. For example, drug trafficking meaning refers to all aspects of the illegal drug trade, from the growing or processing of illicit drugs, to their distribution and sale.
The nonconsensual exploitation of ghanaian citizens, particularly children, is more common than the trafficking of foreign migrants. Ghana is a country of origin, transit, and destination for women and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labor and forced prostitution. Section iii focuses on the impact of organized crime on governance and development, while section iv suggests some initial. Not just in transit drugs, the state and society in west africa 7 foreword in this report, the west africa commission on drugs describes the challenges that our region must confront political, social and economic and the policies it must adopt to prevent drug trafficking, production and consumption from. Francis, to be used for alcohol and drug treatment and rehabilitation. Drug usage in youth statistics indicates that young people tend to be the main target of this drug menace and its abuse. State officials and their involvement in drug trafficking in west africa. Without going into the details, let me attempt to provide an overview of the drug trafficking problem for you to understand the nature and pattern of the illicit drug trade and its effects on. In conjunction with hopeful way foundation, a notforprofit organization in ghana, treatment will be modeled on recovery dynamics and the 12step principles. This illicit activity reinforces and bolsters their financial strength. Lucia researches and writes on a broad range of organised crime types internationally, however her focus to date has been on irregular migration, drug policy in subsaharan africa, illegal gold mining in south america and cyber crime.
The challenge of domestic drug consumption in ghana is set within the wider problem of drug trafficking across the region and the ineffectiveness of local law enforcement in combating it. Dec 19, 2018 this session, presided over by cote divoire, was the councils first thematic meeting on drug trafficking and its threat to stability and peace and security, since december 20. Nov 07, 2017 drug trafficking is a major transnational threat in africa that converges with other illicit activities ranging from money laundering to human trafficking and terrorism. Several west african states are threatened by increasingly powerful transnational organised criminal networks. Drug abuse among the youth in ghana african journal of.
Drug trafficking and threats to national and regional. Assessment of the impact of drug trafficking on national security a. June 2018 ghana strives for a more humane drug policy. Yet, scholarly work on the nature, characteristics and strength of these groups and how their activities threaten states remains sparse, leading to misunderstandings and inadequate appreciation of the precise nature of the threats they pose to west africa. Domestic drug consumption in ghana global initiative. A case study of ghana this article interrogates the emergence of drug trafficking in contemporary. Unodc is continuously monitoring and researching global illicit drug markets in order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of their dynamics. A programming guide contracted under gs23f8012h, task order no. Marijuana has been identified as the major drug of abuse among the youth in ghana. The united states drug enforcement agency dea states that south american drug trafficking groups have established ties with criminal organizations in ghana, nigeria, guineabissau, guinea, togo, and senegal. This entry gives information on the five categories of illicit drugs narcotics, stimulants, depressants sedatives, hallucinogens, and cannabis. Understanding the nature and threats of drug trafficking. Some of the common drugs in ghana include alcohol, heroin, cocaine, opium, and marijuana. The report assesses the efforts of governments around the world to fight human trafficking, including in the united states.
The age of incidence of abuse of marijuana is relatively low, 10 12 years and experimentation has been found to be the main reason for the start of the abuse. Jeff rotmanphotolibrarygetty images drug trafficking is ultimately fueled by the economic principle of supply and demand in a world where there is a high demand for illicit substances that cannot be obtained through any legal means. Two main factors are behind the inadequacy of the response. Ghana over the past decade, particularly drug trafficking and money. Guineabissau may be africas first narcostate, but worrying signs in mali, the gambia, ghana, nigeria, mozambique, kenya, and elsewhere indicate that this is not the only country struggling against the hollowing effects of drug trafficking on security, development, and governance, it states. While the ghana uk collaboration called operation west bridge has existed for over a decade, very little is known about the extent to which that collaborative effort has helped to address drug trafficking particularly in ghana. By raggie johansen human trafficking is an international problem affecting millions of people and many countries around the world.
Drug abuse in ghana, causes, effects and solutions prev. Drugs and drug control in ghana request pdf researchgate. Drug trafficking united nations office on drugs and crime. Cocaine, heroin, cannabis and synthetic drugs are available in all three countries. The initiative is a recognition of the grave impact on public health of the countrys current drug legislation, which imposes punitive sanctions on those engaged in the consumption, production, and trafficking. Causes of drug abuse and prevention strategies in ghana. Drug trafficking definition, examples, cases, processes. Lucia is a senior analyst at the global initiative against transnational organized crime. Ghana is now the second largest west african producer of cannabis. Ghana faces many transnational crimes including goods smuggling, human trafficking, drug trafficking, piracy, and money laundering. However, the 1960s witnessed the emergence of large scale smuggling of africangrown marijuana from nigerian and ghanaian which attracted national, regional.
Regarding trafficking of drugs, all three countries serve as sources for the export of cannabis as well as transit points. This years tip report notes the government of ghanas increased efforts to combat human trafficking in 2017, including. Thefwadtwouldbestructuredasa spaceforsharingexperiences. In ghana, west africa, the internal trafficking of children is one of the biggest challenges. These categories include many drugs legally produced and prescribed by doctors as well as those illegally produced and sold outside of medical channels. Drug traffickingorganizations can avoid the costly process of harvesting illicit crops and producing plantbased drugs by the much cheaper and faster process of chemical. Drug trafficking as a security threat in west africa united nations. The dynamics of interdiction and state capacity open pdf 1 mb illegal drug trafficking through west africa has grown dramatically in the last decade, capturing the attention of u. Interdiction efforts adapt as drug trafficking in africa. The challenge of drug trafficking to democratic governance.
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