Global Instability Fuels Record Drug Problem, UNODC Report Warns

Global Instability Fuels Record Drug Problem, UNODC Report Warns

RMN News Report Highlights:

• The illicit drug trade generates hundreds of billions of dollars annually, though estimates vary.
• Cocaine has emerged as the world’s fastest-growing illicit drug market, with production, seizures, and use all reaching new highs.
• The synthetic drug market continues its global expansion, driven by factors like low operational costs and reduced risks of detection.
• Criminal groups constantly innovate by boosting production, finding new ways to chemically conceal drugs, and leveraging technology for communications and distribution.

RMN News World Desk
July 17, 2025

Vienna – A new era of global instability has significantly intensified the world drug problem, empowering organized crime groups and pushing drug use to historically high levels, according to the UNODC World Drug Report 2025, launched by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime.

Ghada Waly, Executive Director of UNODC, stated that “organized drug trafficking groups continue to adapt, exploit global crises, and target vulnerable populations”. She emphasized the critical need to invest in prevention and address the root causes of the drug trade at every point of the illicit supply chain.

Waly also called for strengthening responses through leveraging technology, enhancing cross-border cooperation, providing alternative livelihoods, and taking judicial action against key actors. A comprehensive, coordinated approach is essential to dismantle criminal organizations, bolster global security, and protect communities.

Soaring Drug Use Statistics: In 2023, 316 million people used a drug (excluding alcohol and tobacco), representing six percent of the population aged 15 to 64, an increase from 5.2 percent in 2013. The report warns that new vulnerable groups fleeing hardship, instability, and conflict could further escalate these numbers.

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Key drug use figures for 2023 include:

• Cannabis: The most widely used drug, with 244 million users.
• Opioids: Used by 61 million people.
• Amphetamines: Accounted for 30.7 million users.
• Cocaine: Used by 25 million people.
• Ecstasy: Used by 21 million people.

Cocaine Market Breaking Records: Cocaine has emerged as the world’s fastest-growing illicit drug market, with production, seizures, and use all reaching new highs in 2023. Illegal production skyrocketed to 3,708 tons, nearly 34 percent more than in 2022. Global cocaine seizures also hit a record 2,275, marking a 68 percent rise between 2019 and 2023.

Cocaine use itself grew from 17 million users in 2013 to 25 million in 2023. The report highlights that cocaine traffickers are expanding into new markets across Asia and Africa. The extreme violence and competition historically confined to Latin America are now spreading to Western Europe, as organized crime groups from the Western Balkans increase their influence.

Synthetic Drug Market Expansion: The synthetic drug market continues its global expansion, driven by factors like low operational costs and reduced risks of detection. This market is dominated by Amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS) such as methamphetamine and amphetamine (including “captagon”). ATS seizures reached a record high in 2023, making up almost half of all global synthetic drug seizures, followed by synthetic opioids, including fentanyl.

The fall of the Assad regime in Syria has created uncertainty for the future of the captagon trade, leading to the discovery of large manufacturing sites. Despite this, seizure data from 2024 and 2025 confirm continued captagon flow, primarily to Arabian Peninsula countries, potentially indicating the release of accumulated stockpiles or ongoing production elsewhere.

Staggering Profits and Calls for Disruption: The illicit drug trade generates hundreds of billions of dollars annually, though estimates vary. Criminal groups constantly innovate by boosting production, finding new ways to chemically conceal drugs, and leveraging technology for communications and distribution. While resilient, these organized criminal networks can be disrupted through a deeper understanding of their aims and structures.

Mapping criminal groups can reveal vulnerabilities, key actors, enablers, and potential intervention areas. Law enforcement agencies are encouraged to invest in technology and skills training that match the sophistication of tools used in the drug supply chain.

Severe Health and Environmental Impacts: Drug use disorders impose a huge cost on individuals, communities, and health systems. The report notes that failing to tackle drug use disorders leads to severe consequences, including nearly half a million deaths and 28 million healthy years of life lost due to disability and premature deaths (DALY) in 2021. Despite this, only one in 12 people with drug use disorders were estimated to have received any form of drug treatment in 2023.

Furthermore, the report highlights that drug use, cultivation, trafficking, and policy responses are significantly impacting the environment in Europe. Potential consequences include deforestation, land-use change, and air, land, and water pollution, which can be considerable at the local level.

The number of dismantled clandestine drug laboratories in Europe increased between 2013 and 2023, producing significant waste and incurring substantial clean-up and ecosystem restoration costs. The report concludes that environmental harm is often not prioritized in drug policy design and implementation, leading to unaccounted waste and impacts.