The struggle against the global illegal drug trade is an uphill one, as it has become entrenched in almost every country with no society being immune from it. The drug syndicates have been able to penetrate almost every major institution including governments, security forces, immigration and airport and shipping authorities, etc., through the use of money power, force and intimidation.
The trade in illegal drugs is a multi-billion dollar global business. Worldwide, the UN estimates there are more than 50 million regular users of heroin, cocaine and synthetic drugs. Millions more are involved in their production, trafficking and sale.
The global trade in illegal drugs is worth billions of dollars a year – as much, by some estimates, as the international tourist trade. The huge sums of money at stake make it one of the most lucrative and dangerous of criminal businesses. Globalisation, banking de-regulation and free trade agreements play into the hands of drugs syndicates, some of which have the organisation and reach of multinational businesses.
The drugs business, like any other industry, is governed by the laws of supply and demand. If there is a shortage of raw material, be it coca leaf or opium, the price goes up – too much and the price goes down. The producers, whether they are peasant farmers in the Andes or synthetic drugs manufacturers in Europe, aim to minimise their costs and maximise profits.
Fewer people take illicit drugs than smoke tobacco or drink alcohol, but the numbers are growing, and the figure is currently estimated at between 3% and 4% of the world’s population. Most widely used is cannabis, but synthetic stimulants are booming in popularity – especially among urban youth. Meanwhile, in some countries, heroin is finding a new market among the fashionable and wealthy.
Our country like so many others also has a serious problem with the illicit drug trade and with our large porous borders,  with limited financial, human and technological resources, combating this scourge is even more difficult. With the large finances at the disposal of the drug syndicates, obtained  from the illegal trade, they are able to become more sophisticated in their operations through the use of the most advanced technologies.
As President Barack Obama underscored in his message to delegates at the first Trans-Pacific Symposium, and most recently in unveiling the Strategy to Combat Transnational Organized Crime: Addressing Converging Threats to National Security (July 2011):
“During the past 15 years, technological innovation and globalisation have proven to be an overwhelming force for good. However, transnational criminal organisations have taken advantage of our increasingly interconnected world to expand their illicit enterprises. Criminal networks are not only expanding their operations, but they are also diversifying their activities, resulting in a convergence of transnational threats that has evolved to become more complex, volatile, and destabilising.”
However, our security forces and Customs Anti-Narcoics Unit (CANU) periodically have been making some significant busts, which albeit are only small dents in the illegal drug trade, are nevertheless significant because with every major bust the drug syndicates have to rethink their strategies.
In their most recent upping of the ante  against the illegal drug trade, our law enforcement officials intercepted and took off the streets more than US$2M (or Gy$400M) worth of compressed marijuana and cocaine during heightened collaboration
What is significant about the bulk of the illegal drugs found is that they were not destined for Guyana, but rather for other countries. Guyana is being merely used as a trans-shipment point.
Basing their opinions on indications, officials have suggested that the drugs found recently were not destined for Guyana, but for onward trans-shipment to some other country. They point to two things: the drugs came in very large (wholesale) quantities, rendering use uneconomical in the region, particularly given the exorbitant prices they fetch; and the dealers do not use the drugs because they know and understand the risks involved.
“Most people who try using cocaine end up dead. It’s a poison, and we are trying our best to keep it off the streets of any country,” CANU Head, Mr. James Singh stated.
Mr. Singh is right. The destruction and human suffering that are being caused by the illegal drug trade is immeasurable and therefore every effort has to be made to curb this dreaded illegal business.