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‘Who is financing all this?’ – Victoria Bright questions networks behind Ghana-linked drug trade

Africa 1 source 1 country 42m ago

International corporate lawyer and entrepreneur says the growing number of drug trafficking cases linked to Ghana is deeply troubling and requires urgent national attention. Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile, she said the scale and frequency of recent seizures suggest that Ghana’s involvement in international drug trafficking may extend beyond isolated incidents. “The scale and the frequency of these recent seizures, well in the last year, linked to Ghana, are extremely troubling,” she said.

Ms Bright said the consignments have been detected through different channels, including commercial containers, road transport and passenger aviation, with some of the largest shipments intercepted after leaving Ghana. She cited figures from a German research analyst indicating that 28 drug busts were recorded between March 2025 and September 2026, 11 of which involved cocaine. According to the figures she referenced, about 16 tonnes of Ghana-linked cocaine, with an estimated street value of $1.3 billion to $1.7 billion, were intercepted during the period.

Ms Bright said the figures are particularly concerning because Ghana does not produce cocaine. “We don’t produce cocaine in this country, and those cocaine figures are particularly striking.” She said seven of the 11 cocaine seizures were made in Ghana, while four were intercepted abroad. By weight, she said approximately 3.6 tonnes were intercepted in Ghana compared with about 4.4 tonnes intercepted in Europe, raising questions about the quantity of drugs that may be passing through the country undetected.

Ms Bright also cited several methods allegedly used to conceal the drugs, including consignments hidden beneath sand in a cement truck at Cape Coast, inside wood shipments bound for Europe and in cassava flour. She said the emerging pattern should compel authorities to investigate the broader networks behind the trade. “This is something that should command our utmost attention.”

International corporate lawyer and entrepreneur Victoria Bright says Ghana must move beyond focusing on individual drug seizures and investigate the wider organised crime networks facilitating the trafficking of narcotics through the country. Speaking on Newsfile, she said the repeated seizures of Ghana-linked drug consignments point to a broader problem that requires scrutiny of the systems and institutions being exploited by traffickers. “We have to go beyond these individual drug seizures and examine the wider questions of organised crime, these allegations of political influence, institutional accountability, and our vulnerability as a transit point for international drug traffickers.” She said the frequency and scale of recent seizures are particularly concerning because consignments linked to Ghana have been intercepted through different channels, including commercial containers, road transport and passenger aviation.

According to Ms Bright, some of the largest consignments linked to Ghana have not been detected locally but were intercepted after reaching Europe and other destinations. She therefore questioned how trafficking networks are able to consistently move drugs through Ghana’s ports and airports and whether they have gained access to or influence within state institutions. “How extensive really are these networks, and how are they consistently getting through our ports and our airports?

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Read the full story at the source MyJoyOnline (Accra, Ghana) · GH ↗
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