Home : General : Gambia News : US narcotics assessment team arrives in Gambia
Gambia News : US narcotics assessment team arrives in Gambia
The US government has expressed concern about narco-traf ficking in West Africa, especially cocaine, PANA reported from here Thursday.
Keira Goldstein, Foreign Affairs Officer of the US State Department, told journalists at the US Embassy in Banjul, the Gambian capital, that though the vast majority of the cocaine came from South America, destined for Europe, it was a trend that affected the US and West African nations too.
The proceeds of the cocaine-transiting West Africa flow back to the same organizations that move cocaine to the US, reinforcing their financial strength and the impact in West Africa is even greater.
Goldstein stressed that the US government was very concerned about the damage narco-trafficking could have on security, good governance and public health.
Goldstein, head of officials from various US government agencies that deal with drug enforcement issues in West Africa, arrived in the country on Thursday to work with Gambian government officials to assess the country's capability to deal with the growing menace of international drug trafficking and other law enforcement issues.
She said transit states in Latin America provided powerful examples of how damaging narco-trafficking could be, adding that high volumes of cocaine trafficking were a relatively new development in West Africa.
She also said "looking at the Latin American experience highlights the dangerous effects trafficking can have on West Africa if not addressed.
"Mexico is currently experiencing the security implications of its status as a transit state and between December 2006 and late July 2009, there were over 13,000 drug-related murders in Mexico."
She added that in 2008, the Mexican government identified 2,204 "zones of impunity" where crime was largely uncontrollable.
She pointed out that West Africa was not yet suffering from high levels of drug-related crimes, but the potential for this to develop was a concern, adding that narco-trafficking posed a security threat to West African nations and the region.
"Throughout Latin American transit states, drugs have been a key driver of public corruption. In various parts of West Africa, we see that traffickers are establishing themselves in the region, establishing front businesses and working to develop relationships with government officials. This is a threat to good governance," she stated.
Goldstein disclosed that there was very limited data on drug abuse in Africa; ho wever, early indications suggested that domestic usage rates were increasing, say ing that of particular concern were reports of crack cocaine on West African streets.
She said cocaine in crack form was very inexpensive, highly dangerous and could fuel drug-related violence.
According to her, teams of experts have been visiting the region to learn more a bout the situation on the ground and how the US might effectively partner with countries working to counter the threat.
Goldstein said over the last year, representatives from many parts of the US had visited Senegal, Guinea Bissau, Togo and Ghana and "we will be continuing from the Gambia to Sierra Leone."
2728 times read
- Yahya Jammeh's role in the proliferation of illegal drug activities in the sub-region and his active support to the narco state of Guinea-Bissau is well known to drug enforcement authorities in the US. Special attention will be paid to Jammeh's role
(Posted on September 14, 2009, 3:51 PM Ansu Koroma)
|
|
|
Rate this Gambia Article
 (total 114 votes)
|
Gambia News
Gambia Archive
Newsletter
Poll: 2011- Gambia General Election
Comment on This Gambia News (1 posted)
Syndication
