Nigeria, March 4 -- The proliferation of synthetic drugs across West Africa represents one of the most urgent and complex public health and security challenges facing the region, a new report has warned.

The report, published by Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime, said the illicit drug landscape has been fundamentally reshaped in recent years, moving away from traditional plant-based substances controlled by hierarchical criminal networks towards a fragmented, decentralised market for man-made psychoactive compounds.

The harms driven by synthetic drug markets, including overdoses, chronic and severe mental health conditions, and community fragmentation, are escalating, the report notes.

Researchers said the burden ...