ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the abuse, sale, trafficking and control of illegal and legal psychoactive and psychotropic drugs, including pharmaceuticals, in Nigeria. Concerns about drugs began after World Wars I and II, and assumed a worrisome dimension in the late 1940s, following the return of some Nigerian soldiers who served in Burma, India during the Second World War. The cannabis plant grows wild throughout most of the tropics including Nigeria, and temperate regions. The Nigerian drug trade is dominated by men, though women are also involved, typically as drug mules. The prevalence of the drug trade in Nigeria has been attributed to several reasons including favorable environment such as climate and population size of the country, and the market for drug consumption. A key area of drug concerns in Nigeria relates to counterfeit drugs. In their study, Erhun observe that between 1985-2000 Nigeria experienced high levels of faking and quackery, counterfeit drugs, quack doctors, illegal chemist shops and hospitals.
