News
Brazil · Cocaine Trafficking · PCC · West Africa
Cocaine trafficking from Brazil through West Africa to the European market is experiencing sharp growth, with Brazil's Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) pivotal to this expansion, evidenced by record Latin American cultivation in 2021 and an unprecedented 24 tonnes seized across West Africa in 2022.
Cocaine trafficking between Brazil and West Africa has a history dating back to the 1980s, but its scale has dramatically increased since 2016, with the majority of consignments transiting West Africa now originating in Brazil. This surge is directly linked to the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC), Brazil's largest criminal organization, which has become central to facilitating this illicit trade.
The expansion is fueled by record cocaine cultivation levels in Latin America, observed in 2021, and growing consumption in the European market. The geographical reach of this trade within West Africa has also broadened significantly; while only Senegal was among the top 10 destinations for cocaine seized in Brazilian ports in 2018, by 2019, Nigeria, Ghana, and Sierra Leone had also joined this list.
The report, based on field observations and interviews conducted between 2015 and 2022, highlights the PCC's critical role across various illicit supply chains, underscoring the evolving dynamics of global drug trafficking.
