State govts urged to tackle drug abuse through community-based interventions

State governments have been urged to embrace and entrench community-based interventions to curb the impact of substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking at the grassroots, in line with the National Drug Control Master Plan (NDCMP).

This call was a key point in the remarks made by the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu; the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brig-Gen Mohamed Marwa; the Country Representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Cheikh Ousmane Toure; and the ECOWAS representative, Dr Daniel Amankwaah, at a training workshop organised by NDLEA for the Nigeria Governors Spouses’ Forum (NGSF) in Abuja on Tuesday.

In her keynote address, Senator Tinubu, who was represented by the wife of the Deputy Senate President, Hajiya Laila Jibrin Barau, commended the NDLEA and NGSF for the initiative aimed at strengthening drug control efforts at the grassroots across the country.

She specifically commended Marwa and his team “for courageously confronting the fight against illicit drug abuse and trafficking in the country.”

She said, “This training could not have come at a better time than now, when statistics and daily life experiences reveal that drugs have infiltrated every nook and cranny of our communities. As a nation, we are confronted with a growing crisis—one that affects the very core of our society, the health, safety, and future of our children.

“Let us always bear in mind that, as state First Ladies, you owe our people the duty to lead by example, to bear their burden, and to share in their pain as we jointly confront drug abuse in our society,” she said, urging wives of state governors to continue providing the right direction through prevention initiatives, advocating for those whose voices have been silenced by addiction, and implementing community interventions to support recovery and reintegrate people into communities after treatment.

Senator Tinubu encouraged first ladies to approach the formidable task ahead with humility, determination, and commitment to building communities where children are protected from harm and empowered to thrive. She stressed that together, they can change the narrative, restore dignity to communities, and ensure a healthier, safer future for all Nigerians.

In his welcome address, Marwa stated that the drug scourge obstructs progress and dims prospects in an already beleaguered world.

“The magnitude and impact of the drug crisis make the attainment of our national aspiration—improving the health and security of all within our borders, as enshrined in the National Drug Control Master Plan 2021–2025—a daunting yet inevitable task for any government and people worthy of the name.”

The NDLEA boss said that over the past four years, the NDLEA has deployed substantial resources towards a comprehensive assault on the drug problem, yielding significant outcomes.

“Under the drug supply reduction mandate—which encompasses drug seizures, arrests, prosecutions, and convictions—we recorded the arrest of 62,595 drug suspects (including 68 drug barons), the seizure of 10,317,137.55 kilograms of assorted drugs, and secured the conviction of 11,628 offenders.

“Furthermore, 1,330.56553 hectares of cannabis farms were identified and destroyed. To ensure a balanced approach in accordance with international best practices, equal emphasis has been placed on drug demand reduction.

“Between January 2021 and March 2025, a total of 24,375 drug users received counselling and treatment at NDLEA facilities, primarily through brief interventions. Concurrently, 10,501 drug sensitisation programmes were conducted nationwide under the auspices of the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) social advocacy campaign, reaching diverse target groups within communities. In parallel, a remarkable 3,843,789 participants were mobilised to partake in these enlightenment initiatives undertaken across the nation.”

He charged the stakeholders not to surrender to despair over the menace of drug abuse, pointing out that, “As patriots and vanguards of our nation’s well-being, it falls on us to strengthen our resolve, to move with deliberate speed towards practical and lasting resolutions that will, God willing, break the vicious cycle of drug abuse.”

He expressed confidence that the training would strengthen capacities, harness community resources, and unlock the potential needed to formulate and implement evidence-based interventions that would salvage and rejuvenate every segment of beleaguered communities.

“Let us, as frontliners, ever remember, the cost of inaction is infinitely higher than the cost of collective action. Your Excellencies, your roles as mothers, changemakers, and drivers of the State Drug Control Committees (SDCC) place upon you a sacred trust—a responsibility not to be borne lightly. Through your ingenuity, your states may yet emerge as shining examples, immortalised in gold as bastions of hope that defied the tides of darkness.”

Also speaking at the workshop, UNODC Country Representative, Cheikh Ousmane Toure, said, “If the root of this crisis lies in our neighbourhoods, schools, and homes, then the solution must too. The National Drug Control Master Plan and the WADA initiative remind us that a national framework alone cannot heal fractured communities. Lasting change begins when states and local governments own this fight.”

He reminded the first ladies that their influence transcends politics, adding, “You are the custodian of trust in your states. When you speak, the community listens. When you act, local governments follow. Today, I urge us to channel this unique power into three pillars of action.

“Number one, state-led resource mobilisation. Every state must prioritise a dedicated budget for prevention and treatment. This means establishing a state-specific drug control task force to align with NDLEA’s national efforts, allocating local government funds to build community drop-in centres, safe spaces for counselling, and care within walking distance of those in need.”

The UNODC chief further stated that states must adopt evidence-based programmes suited to their cultural contexts and decentralise treatment access.

The head of the ECOWAS Drug Prevention and Control Division, Dr Daniel Amankwaah, in his goodwill message, urged state governments to invest in prevention and treatment efforts at the state and community levels.

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