A great number of young people aged between 18 and 35, most of them students, have shifted from marijuana to cocaine and heroine use in the country, Col. Isaac Kwasi Akuoko (RTD), Executive Secretary of the Narcotic Control Board, said on Monday.
Col. Akuoko told the Ghana News Agency that places that used to be known for marijuana sale have now been turned into selling spots for cocaine and heroine.
He said the reality of the problem demands a concerted effort from everyone to fight the menace from every possible angle since gradually it is spreading in both rural and urban areas.
Col. Akuoko later addressed the opening ceremony of a week-long exhibition on drug abuse organised by the Brahma Kumaris
Organisation, an NGO that seeks to educate the youth on drugs.
He said the upsurge in crime in the country is a result of increase in drug use.
Col. Akuoko said the number of people using cocaine, that was perceived as expensive, had increased considerably. "It has now been established that marijuana use among the youth now starts from the between ages 10 and 12."
He said there is the need to look at drug abuse with its social related problems, such as HIV/AIDS because someone on hard drugs may find it difficult to abstain, be faithful and use condoms.
Col. Akuoko disclosed that drug trafficking has an annual turnover of 500 billion dollars, making it the second largest business in the world, after crude oil.
