Mozambique’s Minister of Justice, Constitutional and Religious Affairs, Mateus Saíze, issued on Tuesday, 18 November, in Maputo, a stern warning about the severity of the rapidly expanding drug crisis across the African continent, stressing the need for “coordinated responses, grounded in evidence and aligned with Africa’s development priorities,” according to the Mozambican News Agency.
According to the agency, the warning was delivered during the opening of the Continental Technical Consultation Meeting, an event aimed at validating the new African Union Plan for Drug Control and Crime Prevention.
The event acknowledged the escalating drug crisis in Africa and the urgency of immediate action to curb the problem.
According to Mateus Saíze, Africa is no longer merely a transit route for narcotics but has also become an internal consumer market. “Africa is facing a rapidly escalating drug crisis. Substances such as cocaine and heroin, once only transited through African territory, are now infiltrating local markets and fuelling internal consumption. The situation has worsened with the increasing use of pharmaceutical opioids. Codeine and tramadol accounted for 57% of global seizures between 2019 and 2023,” he said.
Organised by the African Union Commission, the meeting marked a decisive step in assessing the implementation of the 2019–2025 Continental Action Plan and in outlining the new strategic framework for 2026–2030.
The minister emphasised that the future plan must adopt a balanced approach, centred on public health, human rights and sustainable development, while integrating cross-cutting factors such as gender and youth.
The continent’s demographic profile heightens the challenges: more than 60% of Africa’s population is under 25 years of age, increasing the risk of initiating drug use and amplifying impacts in sectors such as education, criminal justice and social cohesion.
At the national level, the minister highlighted that Mozambique is strengthening its legislative and programmatic framework, referring to the National Strategy on Illicit Drugs and Other Psychoactive Substances 2026–2034, aligned with Agenda 2063 and the Government’s Five-Year Plan, as well as the ongoing process of revising Law No. 3/97.
“The approval of the new law will allow us to update the challenges posed by the new modus operandi of drug trafficking and promote harm-reduction actions,” he noted.
The meeting is expected to produce a consensual draft of the new continental plan, with clear strategic pillars, verifiable indicators, an implementation timeline and effective resource mobilisation strategies.
For Mateus Saíze, this is a crucial moment “to strengthen coordination among Member States and consolidate a common front in combating drug trafficking and consumption, which today constitute one of the greatest threats to the continent’s security and development.”
