Description
The illegal drug trade in the Western Indian Ocean is growing and evolving. Increasingly African littoral and island states are seen as target markets as opposed to merely trafficking routes. While recent growth in drug trafficking is partly attributable to the withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan and the resulting increase in drug smuggling from the region, it cannot be seen in isolation from other geopolitical developments in the Indo-Pacific. The Covid-19 pandemic has devastated the economies of states in the Western Indian Ocean region and has slowed down other non-traditional security threats. Nevertheless, maritime drug trafficking has continued unabated, and is already having an impact on these fragile states. Additionally, the growth of drug trafficking in Madagascar and Mozambique threatens the maritime security of the Mozambique Channel, a globally significant sea lane of communication (SLOC). African states have limited capacity and resources to respond effectively and will need the help of the international community to combat the threat. Any response must draw on the lessons learned from the Global War on Drugs to avoid unnecessary and costly errors.
