The main ingredients in Sierra Leone’s kush are synthetic opioids and cannabinoids, report finds
A new report released yesterday [Macau time] by an anti-transnational crime group has identified the core chemical components of kush, a synthetic drug that has swept through Sierra Leone and the region in the past few years.
The report by the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime conducted the first known testing of the most common varieties of kush available in Sierra Leone and neighboring West African countries and found that it contained either nitazenes or synthetic cannabinoids.
“Nitazenes are potent and often deadly synthetic opioids that have spread rapidly across global retail drug markets, including European countries, particularly since 2022,” the report reads. “Illustratively, in 2023 in Estonia and Latvia, 48% and 28% of drug deaths, respectively, were attributable to nitazenes. One of the nitazenes detected in kush is 25 times more potent than fentanyl.”
Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio last year declared a war on kush, calling it an epidemic and a national threat. He launched a task force on drug and substance abuse, promising to lead a government approach focused on prevention and treatment involving law enforcement and community engagement.
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