2 million capsules of Tramadol, Tapentadol intercepted at Tema Port

The Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) intercepted some two million and five hundred thousand capsules of Tramadol and Tapentadol in the first half of 2021.

Seized at the Tema Port, the capsules, which were loaded into two containers, were in transit to Niger and Burkina Faso.

The Director-General of the NACOC, Mr. Francis Torkornoo, who disclosed this, explained that “within the first half of the year 2021, officers of the Narcotics Control Commission have intercepted two containers of Tramadol and Tapentadol transiting the Tema Port for Niger and Burkina Faso respectively, with the first containing one million capsules of Tramadol, and the second, one million five hundred thousand capsules of Tapentadol.”

Mr. Francis Torkornoo was speaking a media briefing in Accra last Friday, organised by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), during which he gave some highlights of activities of his outfit.

According to him, in 2018 and 2019, the abuse of Tramadol by a cross-section of the Ghanaian populace, particularly the youth, was so alarming that it raised public health concerns.

He added that the proliferation and diversion of Tramadol into Ghana and the West African sub-region was detected much earlier, with the then Narcotics Control Board (NACOB) intercepting two 40-footer containers full of Tramadol at the Tema Port in 2014.

The DG said that drug trafficking organisations (DTOs) see these synthetic opioids as an opportunity to maximise their profits, because very small quantities could fetch them a lot of money.

He added that in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, with its associated movement restrictions, DTOs had resorted to the use of the postal and other courier services to traffic drugs to and from Ghana.

“We have seen an increase in drug seizures involving cocaine, heroin and cannabis, as well as dihydrocodeine, across the country through the postal system in the last year,” he revealed.

However, in a bid to address the emerging drugs trends, Mr. Torkornoo indicated that the NACOC had intensified both its drug demand and supply reduction strategies among others.

To the DG, considering the trends, ‘Operation Azure’ had come at a very good time to provide the necessary capacity building for officers, and the needed logistics in the examination and identification of synthetic opioids and other narcotic drugs.

“To this end, the NACOC, on behalf of the government of Ghana and sister-agencies, remains grateful to UNODC and the government of the United States of America for their support in our shared and common responsibility in addressing the global drug menace,” he said to the press.

Held last Friday in Accra, the objective of the media conference was to create awareness of the opioid crisis, and, in turn, provide visibility to the responses being supported through the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) opioid strategy being implemented by the UNODC, and funded by the United States government.

Giving her remarks at the press conference, US Ambassador to Ghana, Karen Sullivan, said the use and abuse of opioids was a global epidemic, and global challenges required global solutions.

As such, she said that “the United States, through the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, is pleased to support Operation Azure, an international effort to enhance operational activities to prevent trafficking of synthetic opioids.”

UNODC Opioid Strategy

In June 2018, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) launched an integrated strategy to support countries in addressing the on-going synthetic opioids crisis affecting mainly North America with fentanyl and its analogues, and in parts of Africa, Asia and the Middle East with tramadol.

The UNODC integrated strategy includes: coordinating the international response; reducing supply of opioids for non-medical use through changes in the scope of control of substances, supporting the implementation of scheduling decisions of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), as well as capacity building in support of national law enforcement interventions; promoting rational use of, and access to, opioids for medical and scientific purposes; and promoting effective prevention strategies and treatment options for substance-use disorders. The strategic response brings together existing UNODC expertise and programmes under one umbrella for a timely organization-wide response that leverages a unique set of complementary activities and resources as well as coordinating inter-agency collaboration with key partners such as the WHO and the INCB.

The integrated UNODC Opioid Strategy is supported by a comprehensive communications and advocacy plan, to highlight global activities, successes and best practices in addressing the opioid crisis. This will raise public awareness of the progress of the strategy and support the visibility of the multilateral response to the crisis and donor commitments and contributions.