Ghana’s Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) has destroyed illicit drugs valued at more than US$10.2 million, removing a large stock of seized narcotics from any chance of returning to the streets.
The exercise took place on Thursday, November 5, 2026, at the Bundase Infantry Training School in the Greater Accra Region. According to NACOC’s breakdown, the combined estimated value of the three categories of drugs stood at US$10,250,503.
The substances had been seized during anti-narcotics operations and cleared for destruction through court orders. Officials said the burn is part of wider efforts to stop confiscated drugs from re-entering circulation.
What was destroyed
Synthetic opioids made up the largest share by value. NACOC said it destroyed 4,730,100 capsules and tablets of synthetic opioids, estimated at about US$5,912,625.
The Commission also disposed of about 338,000 bottles of codeine-infused cough mixture, valued at US$4,225,000, and 564.39 kilogrammes of cannabis with an estimated street value of US$112,878.
Ahead of the burn, the Ghana Standards Authority verified the seized substances. Tests confirmed the presence of cannabis in the samples examined, according to reports from 3News and MyJoyOnline.
Why the haul matters
Beyond the headline dollar figure, the mix of drugs points to more than traditional cannabis trafficking. Millions of synthetic-opioid capsules and hundreds of thousands of codeine cough-mixture bottles underline the scale of pharmaceutical-related drug abuse and diversion that security agencies say they are fighting.
Destroying court-cleared seizures is meant to close a gap criminals sometimes exploit when stockpiles sit in storage. NACOC framed the Bundase exercise as another step in that process.
What NACOC said
Speaking to the media after the exercise, NACOC Director-General Major General Maxwell Obuba Mantey said the Commission remained committed to the fight against narcotics, including in the face of a recent drug seizure in Lebanon linked to Ghana.
He said that case did not mean the Commission had failed in its mandate, and pledged that NACOC would keep pressing traffickers despite the challenges it faces. “We will do our best, we will not give up no matter the challenges we face. We will go after them wherever they are and at the end of the day, we will win the war,” he said, according to 3News.
What happens next
For the public, the Bundase burn means more than US$10.2 million in seized drugs is gone for good. For NACOC, the focus returns to interdiction, court processes and further destructions as new seizures are cleared. GhEcho will report further official updates as they are issued.