THE United States (US) has announced a project to strengthen the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in the areas of forensics and chemical analysis, intelligence gathering and prosecution.
This was disclosed in a statement by NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi on Monday, December 26.
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The NDLEA received an official letter from the US government announcing the grant, which followed a request by the agency’s chairman, Mohamed Buba Marwa, at meetings with US officials in Abuja and Washington DC.
The statement said the project would be implemented by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Nigeria.
“Aside from the support for the forensic and chemical analysis capacity of the Agency, the US government also said the project will further support NDLEA efforts to conduct intelligence-led investigations through diverse resources as well as legal books and an e-library for prosecution and other legal needs of the Agency.
“Through all this, the NDLEA will be better equipped to prosecute cases with reliable evidence, using improved collection, handling, and custodial procedures. We appreciate our strong and continued working relationship and believe this project will be an important step in advancing our shared goal of a united, peaceful and stable Nigeria,” the statement added
The latest support from the US Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) comes on the heels of a N500 million grant for funding of selected projects in the Agency by the Abdul Samad Rabiu Initiative (ASR Africa).
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