{
  "id": 8749814,
  "title": "How West Africa became the cocaine route to Europe and America",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/20/how-west-africa-became-the-cocaine-route-to-europe-and-america",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-20T19:13:40.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Ghana Business News",
    "slug": "ghana-business-news",
    "url": "https://www.ghanabusinessnews.com/2026/09/20/how-west-africa-became-the-cocaine-route-to-europe-and-america/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "West Africa has become the primary cocaine route leading to Europe and America, according to recent reports. In September of 2026, a French airport security check resulted in the arrest of a South African man carrying heroin worth over two million rands. This incident highlights the ongoing drug trafficking crisis in the region, which has intensified in recent years.\n\nGhana, in particular, has emerged as a key transit point for narcotics, with the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC) estimating that at least 30% of cocaine consumed in Western Europe now passes through West Africa between 2025 and 2026. While this figure may be as high as one-third, the actual scale of the trade is likely even larger, given persistent intelligence gaps.\n\nBetween 2012 and 2018, less than two tonnes of cocaine were seized annually in West Africa. However, this figure surged to around 30 metric tonnes in 2025 alone, representing a 50% increase over the previous period. The Global Organized Crime Index 2025 has rated West Africa's cocaine trade as the fastest-growing criminal market in the region, with a score of 6.67, up from 5.20 in 2019.\n\nThe surge in cocaine trafficking can be attributed to three converging forces: record coca production in Latin America, surging cocaine demand in Europe, and intensified European pressure on direct routes from Latin America to Europe. Coastal Guinea-Bissau, with its archipelago of mangrove-fringed islands and unstable politics, has long been a hub for drug trafficking, earning the nickname \"Africa's first narco-state.\"",
  "summary": "Sunday September 20, 2026, a 52-year-old South African man travelling from Accra to Johannesburg was arrested at OR Tambo Airport. Police searched and found substances suspected to be heroin, with an estimated street value of more than two million rands. The post How West Africa became the cocaine route to Europe and America appeared first on Ghana Business News .",
  "key_points": [
    "West Africa now primary cocaine route to Europe and America.",
    "Ghana key transit point, 30% of Western Europe cocaine passes through.",
    "Cocaine trade in West Africa surged 50% from 2018 to 2025."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}