The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has expressed concern as drug abuse among women continues to surge.
According to the Agency, latest records on drug use show that one in four drug abusers in the country is a woman.
The Ogun State Commander of the NDLEA, Ibiba Odili, stated this during the Launch of the War Against Drug Abuse in collaboration with Lions Club International, in Abeokuta.
The NDLEA official revealed that 14.3 million Nigerian drug abusers are within the age range of 15 and 64 years, adding that more women are now involved.
She said, “2018 survey tells us that the most common drug abused in Nigeria is cannabis, which regrettably is cultivated mostly in the South-West region of Nigeria.
“One out of every four drug users is a woman. In 2018 data shows that more women are going into drug use. And if more women are going into drug use, it is a source of worry for us, because, it means that the traditional role of women in families and communities as caregivers, role models, and life moulders will be threatened, because what quality of children are these women going to raise?”
Odili further disclosed that Nigeria transformed from a mere transit country for drug trafficking to a major consumer and even producer of illicit substances.
“We started by being a transit country, consuming maybe cannabis, alcohol, and all of that, then, we graduated to heroin, cocaine, but today, regrettably, Nigeria is not just transit, we are huge consumers, and we are not just cultivator of cannabis, we are now producing drugs, such as methamphetamine, which is highly addictive, very potent.”
The Governor of Lions Clubs International, District 404 B3, Olayiwola Fadairo said the Club has the mandate to cleanse the society of drugs.
“We want to partner with NDLEA anywhere and anyhow that we can help. If we cannot eradicate it, we can reduce it,” he said.