The Ambassador of Zimbabwe to Ghana, His Excellency K.E. Chinoza, has paid a courtesy call on the Director-General of the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC), Major General Maxwell Obuba Mantey, to formally brief the Commission’s management on a proposed benchmarking mission by Zimbabwe’s soon-to-be established Drug and Substance Abuse Control and Enforcement Agency.
The meeting, held on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, was attended by the Director-General and his two Deputy Directors-General.
The proposed visit forms part of Zimbabwe’s preparations to operationalise its new national anti-drug agency, which is expected to assume the lead role in coordinating the country’s response to drug trafficking, substance abuse, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation once the enabling legislation comes into force.
Speaking during the meeting, Ambassador Chinoza explained that Zimbabwe’s Transition Task Team intends to undertake a benchmarking exercise in selected African countries with established and successful drug control institutions, with Ghana being one of its key destinations.
He noted that the visit seeks to study Ghana’s institutional framework and operational strategies that have earned NACOC continental recognition as one of Africa’s leading drug control agencies.
“In preparation for the establishment of the Agency, a Transition Task Team intends to undertake a benchmarking exercise with selected countries, including Ghana, that have established anti-drug institutions and proven drug control frameworks,” the Ambassador stated.
According to him, the benchmarking mission will enable Zimbabwe to draw practical lessons from Ghana’s experience in areas including institutional design, governance systems, intelligence-led enforcement, operational models, rehabilitation programmes, border management, international cooperation mechanisms and inter-agency coordination.
He further explained that the exercise would lay the foundation for long-term collaboration between the two countries by creating opportunities for technical cooperation, intelligence sharing, capacity building and enhanced law enforcement partnerships in combating transnational organised crime and illicit drug trafficking.
Ambassador Chinoza further revealed that Ghana’s approach to narcotics control recently received continental recognition during the 13th Africa Security Symposium (ASEC 2026).
“Director-General, allow me to highlight that from the recently held 13th Africa Security Symposium (ASEC 2026), Ghana’s NACOC model was cited as the best practice for inter-agency coordination,” he said.
In his remarks, the Director-General of NACOC, Major General Maxwell Obuba Mantey, expressed appreciation to the Government of Zimbabwe for selecting Ghana as one of the countries to benchmark its emerging anti-drug institution.
He reaffirmed NACOC’s commitment to supporting African countries in strengthening their drug control systems through knowledge sharing and collaboration.
The Director-General assured the ambassador delegation of the Commission’s readiness to share its experiences, operational approaches and best practices in narcotics control.
“We are ready to share our experiences and international best practices in the fight against illicit drugs. Drug trafficking is a transnational challenge and our collective success depends on collaboration among African countries,” Major General Mantey stated.
Reflecting on Ghana’s progress in combating illicit drugs, the Director-General acknowledged that logistics continue to pose a challenge for many drug law enforcement agencies across the continent. However, he emphasised that sustained government commitment and institutional reforms have enabled NACOC to make significant strides in both drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction.
“One of the major challenges in Africa is logistics, but the commitment of Government has contributed significantly to our success as NACOC. We approach the drug problem from both the demand reduction and supply reduction perspectives. While we enforce the law rigorously against drug traffickers, we are equally committed to educating especially our young people to stay away from drugs,” he said.
Major General Mantey stressed that an effective national drug control strategy must strike a balance between robust law enforcement and sustained public education, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation interventions.
The meeting reaffirmed the growing cooperation between Ghana and Zimbabwe in addressing the evolving challenges of illicit drug trafficking and substance abuse and underscored the importance of regional collaboration in building resilient drug control institutions across Africa.
The proposed benchmarking visit is expected to deepen bilateral relations between the two countries while providing Zimbabwe with valuable insights into Ghana’s integrated and people-centred approach to narcotics control. It also reflects the increasing recognition of NACOC’s operational model as a reference point for strengthening drug control governance and inter-agency coordination across the African continent.
Source:Mybrytfmonline.com
