India’s Opioid Kings: Pharmaceutical Firm Behind West Africa’s Drug Crisis Unmasked
By Royal Ibeh
A shocking BBC Eye Investigation has uncovered how an Indian pharmaceutical company, Aveo Pharmaceuticals, was illegally manufacturing and exporting highly addictive opioids to West Africa, fueling a growing public health crisis.
The Mumbai-based company produced unlicensed pills containing a dangerous combination of tapentadol, a potent opioid, and carisoprodol, a banned muscle relaxant. These drugs, marketed under various brand names, were being widely sold on the streets of Ghana, Nigeria, and Côte d’Ivoire, despite being illegal in these countries.
A BBC undercover operative, posing as a Nigerian businessman, infiltrated Aveo’s factory and secretly filmed a company director, Vinod Sharma, openly promoting the dangerous pills.
In the footage published by the BBC, Sharma acknowledged the harmful effects of the drugs but dismisses concerns, saying, “This is very harmful for their health—but nowadays, this is business.”
The devastating impact of the opioids is evident in West Africa. In Tamale, Ghana, an increasing number of young people are addicted to the drugs, prompting local chief Alhassan Maham to form a volunteer task force to seize and destroy illicit pills.
In Nigeria, Brig. Gen. Mohammed Buba Marwa (rtd), chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), warned that opioids are “devastating our youths, our families, and every community in Nigeria.”
According to BBC World Service/BBC Eye report, “Indian law prohibits the manufacture and export of unlicensed drugs unless they meet the importing country’s regulations, however, Aveo has been shipping these opioids to Ghana, violating Indian and international drug laws. The Indian drug regulator, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), stated that the government was committed to preventing illegal pharmaceutical exports and has pledged to take immediate action against any companies involved in malpractice.”
Officials from Nigeria’s drug enforcement agencies, including NAFDAC and the Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria (PCN), confirmed that efforts were underway to crack down on illegal opioid distribution network. Recent raids in Lagos State and other cities have led to multiple arrests and the seizure of billions of naira worth of illicit drugs.
Public health advocates are calling for stronger diplomatic pressure on India to hold Aveo Pharmaceuticals accountable.
For instance, the executive director of Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), Akinbode Oluwafemi, emphasised the need for punitive action, stating, “If you don’t get punished for a crime, you will do it again.”
The BBC’s findings have sparked outrage, with calls for tighter international controls on pharmaceutical exports. As the crisis deepens, authorities in West Africa continue to battle the influx of illegal opioids, hoping to protect future generations from the devastating consequences of addiction.
Indian authorities have banned two highly-addictive opioids in response to a BBC investigation which found they were fuelling a public health crisis in parts of West Africa.
In a letter seen by the BBC from India's Drugs Controller General, Dr Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi said permission to manufacture and export the drugs had been withdrawn.
BBC Eye found one pharmaceutical company, Aveo, had been illegally exporting a harmful mix of tapentadol and carisoprodol in countries like Ghana, Nigeria, and Cote D'Ivoire.
India's Food and Drug Administration said the company's factory in Mumbai had since been raided and its entire stock seized.
The circular from Dr Raghuvanshi, dated to Friday, cited the BBC investigation in his decision to ban all combinations of tapentadol and carisoprodol, which was to be implemented with immediate effect.
He said this also came after officials had looked into "the potential of drug abuse and its harmful impact on population".
Tapentadol is a powerful opioid, and carisoprodol is a muscle relaxant so addictive it is banned in Europe.
Carisoprodol is approved for use in the US, but only for short periods of up to three weeks. Withdrawal symptoms include anxiety, insomnia and hallucinations.
The combination of the two drugs is not licensed for use anywhere in the world as they can cause breathing difficulties and seizures and an overdose can kill.
Despite the risks, these opioids are popular street drugs in many West African countries, because they are so cheap and widely available.
Publicly-available export data show that Aveo Pharmaceuticals, along with a sister company called Westfin International, has shipped millions of these tablets to Ghana and other West African countries.
The BBC World Service also found packets of these pills with the Aveo logo for sale on the streets of Nigeria, and in Ivoirian towns and cities.
Nigeria, with a population of 225 million people, provides the biggest market for these pills. It has been estimated that about four million Nigerians abuse some form of opioid, according to the nation's National Bureau of Statistics.
As part of the investigation, the BBC also sent an undercover operative - posing as an African businessman looking to supply opioids to Nigeria - inside one of Aveo's factories in India, where they filmed one of Aveo's directors, Vinod Sharma, showing off the same dangerous products the BBC found for sale across West Africa.
In the secretly recorded footage, the operative tells Sharma that his plan is to sell the pills to teenagers in Nigeria "who all love this product".
Sharma in response replies "OK," before explaining that if users take two or three pills at once, they can "relax" and agrees they can get "high".
Towards the end of the meeting, Sharma says: "This is very harmful for the health," adding that "nowadays, this is business".
Sharma and Aveo Pharmaceuticals did not respond to a request for comment when the BBC's initial investigation was published.
India's Food and Drug Administration said a sting operation saw Aveo's entire stock seized and further production halted in a statement on Friday. Further legal action will be taken against the company, it added.
The agency said it was "fully prepared" to take action against anyone involved in "illegal activities that tarnish the reputation of the country".
The FDA has been instructed to carry out further inspections to prevent the supply of the drugs, it said.
Today, the @DGatNAFDAC Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, visited the agency's Enforcement Office in Apapa, Lagos, to inspect illicit pharmaceuticals confiscated from the Idumota Open Drug Market.
The NAFDAC warehouse was filled, with some seized drugs even stored in the Director’s office.
Addressing journalists after the tour, Prof. Adeyeye emphasised, —We are not disturbing trade; we are protecting lives. What NAFDAC is doing is exactly what it is mandated to do. There is no politics in this operation!
She further noted that most shops in these markets are not registered with the Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria (PCN), meaning violations existed from the outset.
Defending the agency’s intensified enforcement in Onitsha, Aba, and Idumota, she highlighted that over 1,000 personnel are actively working to remove counterfeit, expired, and unregistered medicines from circulation.
I visited the Ọgbọ ogwu and adjoining market today in Onitsha. As the biggest open drug market in Africa, it is not surprising that Federal Agencies and regulatory bodies would, from time to time, visit the market to enforce standards and check the sale of fake, counterfeit, and controlled drugs in the market.
With drugs and related matters captured strictly on the exclusive list, my visit today was interventionist. First, I sought to ascertain why other markets close to the drug market in Onitsha were closed. Away from the media sensation created by a few political actors, the leadership of the Plumbing materials market, which was shut down alongside the drug market, confirmed to me that the discoveries made by the Regulators in some shops in the plumbing material market were both shocking and disturbing.
Right inside these shops were found cartons of counterfeit and controlled drugs, many of which had been banned globally. How these drugs, which have been banned globally and locally, are still being manufactured in India, pass through our various ports (sea and air), and find their way to our local drug markets remains a question only the relevant authorities can answer.
While we must rid our country of fake and counterfeit drugs, it is important for the Federal Government to tighten up the noose on the supply end of the value chain. I have directed that the search, which had commenced a few days ago, be expedited so that in less than 10 days from today, the traders at the Plumbing materials market can be allowed to reopen and commence their legitimate commercial activities.
As a government, we are already building a coordinated wholesale drug centre in Oba, Idemili South LGA, that will accommodate the new and standardized Ogbo ogwu market. This is our own contribution to ending the current chaotic market environment where fake and counterfeit drugs thrive.
ONITSHA remains the largest trading hub in Africa, we will further expand this status to a more befitting height.
PRESIDENT TINUBU PLEDGES SUPPORT FOR FINTECH COMPANIES AS FLUTTERWAVE SEEKS LISTING ON THE NIGERIAN EXCHANGE
President Tinubu said his administration will support businesses in the financial technology sector that provide payment infrastructure services for Nigerians and Africans.
He said this when he received the leadership of Flutterwave and Alami Capital in Abuja on Saturday afternoon.
Flutterwave, a leading Fintech company founded by young Nigerians and headquartered in Lagos, operates in the U.S., Canada, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, South Africa, and 29 other African countries.
Olugbenga Agboola, the CEO; Adeleke Adekoya, a co-founder; Oluwabankole Falade and Mitesh Popat, represented Flutterwave at the meeting. Ms Oluseun Olufemi-White represented Alami Capital as its CEO.
Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy Mr Wale Edun led the delegation to meet President Tinubu. Dr. Armstrong Ume Takang, the Managing Director and Chief Executive of the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI), and Dr. Inuwa Kashifu Abdullahi, the Director General/ Chief Executive Officer of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), also attended.
President Tinubu said Nigeria is genuinely open to business, and as President, he is determined to remove all obstacles to allow companies to thrive.
He commended Flutterwave's commitment to building capacity in the digital economy sector, especially as it is being made possible by energetic, young Nigerians. He said he is honoured to be the President of a country with such a youthful and resourceful population.
He said the leadership Flutterwave provides in the digital world is what Nigeria needs today to grow its economy and make life easier for most of its population.
Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, said Flutterwave has made significant progress since its establishment 10 years ago. It has created jobs and helped diversify the economy by providing innovative digital platforms and payment services in Nigeria and across Africa.
The CEO of Flutterwave, Agboola, said the company has made it easy for Nigerians to pay for some global services with Naira and provided payment platforms for Nigerians in the diaspora who are willing to send money to families and relatives in the country.
He said Flutterwave, valued at over $3 billion, is a Nigerian export and brand employing over 1,000 Nigerians.
He said the company seeks to be listed on the Nigerian Exchange and solicited the President's support.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive of MOFI, Dr. Armstrong Ume Takang, said that as Africa's biggest economy, Nigeria must demonstrate its economic prowess by strategically positioning products and services by Nigerian companies, such as Flutterwave, in the homes of all Africans.
He said Flutterwave spends millions of dollars monthly on hosting services, but that money goes to other countries.
He suggested supporting Galaxy Backbone's hosting services to enable it to handle companies like Flutterwave.
Bayo Onanuga Special Adviser to the President (Information & Strategy) February 22, 2025
The ongoing exercise has so far led to the discovery of illicit drugs worth billions of naira. The market, comprising multiple buildings and shops, operates as a hub for repackaging and revalidating expired medicines under false claims, before selling to unsuspecting consumers.
Since the enforcement operation began over a week ago, NAFDAC has removed at least 10 fully loaded 40-foot trucks of fake, substandard, and adulterated drugs from the market, some falsely claiming NAFDAC approval.
This man is the chairman of the building materials section of the market.
They asked him what he saw and he said that some people are using the place as wharehouse for drugs.
They asked him if he was aware of it and he said that he was not aware.
They asked him what he's going to do about it and he said that he has called for a meeting of officials of the market.
They asked him about the time that traders attacked NAFDAC officials at the market, but he said that he was not the chairman at that time. He said he heard about it, but he did not witness it.
Traders in the market have accused NAFDAC of targeting non-drug sections during the operation. However, intelligence led the agency to search these areas, revealing large quantities of illicit pharmaceuticals.
Heightened security measures were necessary due to a past incident...
In a startling discovery, NAFDAC uncovered prohibited drugs hidden inside PLUMBING MATERIALS SHOPS at the Onitsha Bridgehead Drug Market.
Officials seized two trailer loads of unregistered narcotics, banned tramadol, and counterfeit drugs concealed within these shops. pic.twitter.com/jJZy9oxSeN
Crime › Re: India Bans Two Opioids Behind Drug Crisis In Nigeria, Ghana & Ivory Coast by naptu2(op): 2:42am On Feb 24, 2025*. Modified: 3:52am On Feb 24, 2025
