The Chairman and Chief Executive of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), has raised the alarm over the increasing number of drug users in Nigeria, saying 3 million people are involved in the Northwest, with Kano leading the pack.

The NDLEA boss also lamented that one in four drug users in Nigeria is a female.

Marwa spoke at the flagg-off of a sensitisation campaign against drug abuse, domestic violence, and illicit drug trade organised by the National Orientation Agency (NOA) in Kaduna on Monday.

He said 3 million people in the North West were affected by drug abuse, noting that ?the alarming rate is part of a larger national crisis, with 14.3 million Nigerians aged 15-64 using psychoactive substances.?

He disclosed that the agency had intensified efforts to combat drug trafficking, with over 57,792 arrests and 9.9 million kilograms of drugs seized in the past four years.

He said, ?The 2018 National Drug Use Survey conducted by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) revealed an alarming reality of 14.3 million Nigerians aged 15?64 use psychoactive substances. Even more disturbing is the fact that one in four drug users in Nigeria are female, while one in five suffers from drug use disorder.?

He noted that the North-West geopolitical zone, comprising Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, and Zamfara states, presented an even more concerning picture with an estimated 25 million people in 2016.

?A state-by-state breakdown of drug use prevalence in the North-West shows that Kano has the highest rate at 16.0%, with approximately 1,070,000 drug users, followed by Zamfara at 13.5% (312,000 users), Kebbi at 12.6% (286,000 users), Katsina at 12.0% (481,000 users), Kaduna at 10.0% (462,000 users), Sokoto at 9.0% (230,000 users), and Jigawa at 7.0% (211,000 users). These figures are deeply troubling and underscore the urgent need for collective action to combat drug abuse and its devastating consequences,? he stressed.

In his remarks, the Director-General of NOA, Malam Lanre Issa-Onilu, said the campaign was a call to action for all stakeholders to break the cycle of addiction and crime.

He emphasized the need for traditional and religious leaders to take a stand against drug abuse and advocate for rehabilitation.

He disclosed that the campaign would employ a multi-faceted approach, including town hall meetings, community engagement, advocacy visits, and a robust media campaign to drive home the message.

On his part, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas Tajudeen, raised concern over a data from the Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey and reports from the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development which revealed that nearly 35 per cent of women nationwide have experienced some form of domestic violence.

He said the situation was more alarming in the Northwest saying, ?For instance, recent figures from Kano suggest that up to 40 per cent of women have encountered domestic abuse, while Kaduna, Katsina, and Sokoto have recorded significant increases in reported cases over the past year.?

On drug abuse, he said, the government had significantly bolstered the capacity of the NDLEA by increasing funding, providing modern tools and enhanced training, and launching initiatives that expand rehabilitation centres and community-based outreach programmes.

These measures, he said, had disrupted drug trafficking networks and provided essential support to those affected by substance abuse.

He assured that the government would continue to work closely with the NOA and the NDLEA as well as other key stakeholders, engaging directly with communities, traditional rulers, religious leaders, educators, and non-governmental organisations across all states and local governments in the Northwest. (Daily Trust)

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