•A cannabis farm Photo: File copy

The Cannabis Cultivation Survey carried out by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in Nigeria alongside some partners has revealed that there are about 8,900 hectares of cannabis cultivation in six southern states.

The survey, done in partnership with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency and the European Union, which funded it, implied that the affected states; Edo, Ekiti, Ogun, Ondo, Osun and Oyo have about 133,500 plots of Cannabis.

It noted that the border area between Edo and Ondo states had the highest density of cultivation.

The UNODC in a Friday statement by its Communications Associate, Ms Olivia Ogechi Okorondu, said its 2018 Drug Use Survey showed that cannabis was the most commonly used drug in Nigeria, noting that more than 10.6 million adults use it in Nigeria. “Over half of those admitted for treatment of illegal drug use were admitted for cannabis use.”

Giving the highlights of the survey, the statement partly read, “Being the first systematic exercise of its kind, the survey provides a baseline assessment of the extent of cannabis cultivation in Nigeria. It focuses on six south-western states of Nigeria that have been assessed as being at highest risk for cannabis cultivation.

“The methodology includes a remote sensing survey covering an area of 4,500 km in the six identified states, capturing 17,185 photos and collecting data from aerial overflights in 2019 and structured interviews with NDLEA experts working in the same six states in 2021.

“The key findings of the survey are: an estimated cultivation of 8,900 hectares of cannabis in six states with highest density in the border area between Edo and Ondo states; the location of cannabis fields deep inside dense forests, establishing linkages between cannabis cultivation and deforestation.”

The survey also showed that cannabis farmers work together, and that they supply the drug to the domestic market and export to other countries.