Niamey, 7 June 2026 – Nigerien authorities marked a new milestone in the fight against narcotics trafficking by incinerating a major cocaine shipment seized in several operations across the country. The ceremony took place this Sunday at the Central Livestock Laboratory (LABOCEL), under the aegis of the National Coordination Commission for Drug Control (CNCLD).
Over 319 kg of cocaine destroyed
A total of 280 bricks of cocaine, weighing 319.745 kilograms, were destroyed. This substantial quantity came from two major seizures: 47 bricks intercepted in Gaya, in the Dosso region, on 29 September 2025, and 233 bricks seized in Zinder on 19 May 2026.
Before the incineration, agents from the Directorate of Technical and Scientific Police (DPTS) analysed a sample of the substance. The tests confirmed it was cocaine in hydrochloride (HCL) form.
Procedure meets international drug management standards
In his remarks, the CNCLD president, Mai Moussa Elhadji Bashir, stressed that this operation complies with international requirements for managing seized narcotics. He noted that authorities must destroy confiscated drugs within a reasonable timeframe to avoid storage risks, even while legal proceedings may take years.
Judicial and security officials mobilised
Presiding over the ceremony, the Minister of Justice, Alio Daouda, oversaw the destruction process alongside several senior judicial and security officials. Also present were the Public Prosecutor at the Niamey High Court, the Director of the Central Office for the Repression of Illicit Drug Trafficking (OCRTIS), the Director General of LABOCEL, and representatives from defence and security forces.
In short, this destruction of more than three hundred kilograms of cocaine demonstrates the determination of Nigerien authorities to intensify the fight against drug trafficking networks, a phenomenon posing a growing challenge to security and stability in the Sahel region.
