In a significant step towards combating the growing menace of substance abuse among Nigerian youth, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the Federal Ministry of Education have reached a landmark agreement to embed drug education in school curricula and implement compulsory drug integrity tests for students in tertiary institutions.
This development followed a high-level meeting between the NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), and the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Olatunji Alausa, in Abuja on Wednesday, July 30, 2025.
Marwa, who led a delegation of NDLEA management staff, emphasized the devastating effect of drugs on the nation’s youth.
“We are actually fighting for the souls of our children,” he said. “The drug scourge, as we all know, is very high in Nigeria… We also know that drug use is exacerbating criminal activities – Boko Haram, terrorism, banditry – and without drugs, they wouldn’t be able to do what they are doing.”
He outlined key areas of proposed collaboration with the Ministry:
1. Review of the secondary school drug education curriculum, to reflect emerging psychoactive substances and current realities;
2. Introduction of stand-alone drug prevention programmes including lectures, competitions, and parent involvement;
3. Adoption of drug test policies in tertiary institutions, covering freshers, returning students, and random tests to deter abuse.
Marwa cited the Agency’s achievements in law enforcement, noting that within the last two years, NDLEA had arrested 40,887 drug offenders, secured 8,682 convictions, and seized 5,507 metric tons of illicit drugs. “From January last year to now, we have seized over one billion pills of tramadol, worth more than ₦1 trillion,” he said, adding that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the construction of seven new rehab centres and one model rehab in each geo-political zone.
Responding, Minister Alausa lauded Marwa’s dedication and passion. “Since I knew him 30 years ago, he’s still serving the country… You could see the passion in the way he laid out the problems,” he said.
He acknowledged the urgency of the crisis: “When youths get into drugs, they won’t go to school, and even if they do, they’re not getting functional education. Their critical thinking drops, and they become unemployable. Then they resort to crime. It’s a huge menace we need to tackle quickly.”
The Minister pledged full support for the NDLEA’s proposals. “We will start with tertiary institutions – fresh and returning students and random tests. We do not have a choice,” he affirmed.
He also announced the creation of a Substance Use Prevention Unit within the Ministry and proposed the formation of an inter-ministerial technical working group to coordinate implementation. The new unit was formally launched by the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Mr. Abel Oluwamuyiwa Enitan.
Furthermore, Alausa revealed plans to cascade drug education to the primary school level, while the secondary school curriculum is currently under review. He also promised that agencies like UBEC and TETFUND would support the NDLEA Academy in Jos in deepening drug education efforts across the country.
