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Date: April 30, 2024 Tue

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Results for fraudulent medicines

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Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Title: Transnational Organized Crime in West Africa: A Threat Assessment

Summary: Key Findings • The flow of cocaine through West Africa appears to have declined to about 18 tons, down from a peak of 47 tons in 2007. These 18 tons would be worth US$1.25 billion at wholesale in Europe, providing West African traffickers with substantial income. • Modes of conveyance for cocaine from South America to Europe via West Africa have shifted over time in response to enforcement efforts. Much of the cocaine headed to West Africa today comes from Brazil, where Nigerian crime groups are exporting the drug. Recently, these groups have been moving into containerized consignments and maritime shipping, adopting these methods in addition to their traditional methods of air couriering and postal shipments. From West Africa, an increase in the use of Benin as a departure point for air couriers has been noted. • Methamphetamine production in the region is a growing concern, with two methamphetamine laboratories detected in Nigeria in 2011-2012. The main market for West African-made meth is East Asia, and to a lesser extent, South Africa. The income from trafficking West African-made methamphetamines to East Asia is remarkably high for such a new flow, but the long-term prospects are limited in light of competition from producers located in the destination markets. • Due to the economic downturn, the flow of smuggled migrants from West Africa to Europe has declined in recent years. The prominence of the many routes has shifted significantly, with routes moving eastwards. • Given the number of weapons still circulating from past conflicts in the region, there is very little need to import large numbers of weapons into West Africa. Most of the illicit flow of weapons in the region is diverted or stolen from licit national stocks held by to 20,000 firearms from Libya does represent a serious threat to stability in the region, a threat that appears to have been realized in northern Mali. • The prevalence of fraudulent medicines is highest not in the markets where profits would be the greatest, but in those where chances of detection are lowest. At least 10% of the imported medicines circulating in West Africa are fraudulent, posing a grave threat to public health and safety. • Maritime piracy has generated renewed attention in the Gulf of Guinea, with 22 pirate attacks occurring off the coast of Benin in 2011. In 2012, Togo became the new hotspot for attacks on petroleum tankers. These vessels are attacked because there is a booming black market for fuel in West Africa. • Unless the flows of contraband are addressed, instability and lawlessness will persist, and it will remain difficult to build state capacity and the rule of law in the region. Each of these flows requires a tailored response, because the commodities involved respond to distinct sources of supply and demand.

Details: Vienna: UNODC, 2013. 68p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 27, 2013 at: http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/tocta/West_Africa_TOCTA_2013_EN.pdf

Year: 2013

Country: Africa

URL: http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/tocta/West_Africa_TOCTA_2013_EN.pdf

Shelf Number: 127736

Keywords:
Cocaine
Drug Trafficking
Firearms Trafficking
Fraudulent Medicines
Human Smuggling
Maritime Crime
Methamphetamines
Organized Crime (West Africa)
Piracy/Pirates

Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Title: Transnational Organized Crime in East Asia and the Pacific A Threat Assessment

Summary: East Asia and the Pacific have experienced rapid economic and social changes during the past few decades and faced the considerable regulation challenges these changes create for public authorities. This report takes a look at the manner in which criminal enterprises have developed alongside legitimate commerce in recent years. Drawing on official statistics, academic studies, and interviews with law enforcement officials, it attempts to outline something about the mechanics of illicit trade: the how, where, when, who, and why of selected contraband markets affecting the region. It also endeavours to give the best reading of the available data on the size of these markets. Though the list of contraband markets discussed is not comprehensive and it is impossible to quantify the value of these markets with any precision, these estimates are offered to prompt public debate on areas of great public policy significance. The mechanics of trafficking are discussed for a nonexhaustive list of 12 illicit flows, which themselves are organized under four headings: 1. Human trafficking and smuggling of migrants 2. Illicit drugs (heroin and methamphetamine) 3. Resources (wildlife, wood products) and pollution crime (e-waste, ozone-depleting substances) 4. Products (counterfeit goods, fraudulent medicines).

Details: Vienna: UNODC, 2013. 192p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 1, 2013 at: http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/Studies/TOCTA_EAP_web.pdf

Year: 2013

Country: Asia

URL: http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/Studies/TOCTA_EAP_web.pdf

Shelf Number: 128580

Keywords:
Counterfeit Goods
Drug Trafficking
Fraudulent Medicines
Human Smuggling
Human Trafficking
Offenses Against the Environment
Organized Crime (East Asia, Pacific)
Wildlife Crime