In a fresh wave of international acclaim for Nigeria’s anti-narcotics campaign, the United States International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Bureau (US-INL) has lauded the recent high-octane operational breakthroughs of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), vowing to scale up existing bilateral ties.
The high-level endorsement was contained in a statement released on Thursday, August 20, 2026, by the NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi. According to Babafemi, the commendation was delivered by the incoming INL Country Director in Nigeria, Mr. Derek Tolliver. Tolliver led a visiting delegation from the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) to a strategic meeting with NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), at the agency’s headquarters in Abuja.
While appreciating Marwa for hosting his team, Tolliver underscored the mission of his diplomatic tour:“the purpose of this meeting was to make the initial introductions, to let you know that I’m here. We want to continue the great work and build upon the work of our previous INL programs here. Then I am certainly looking forward to following up with the NDLEA—me and my team in our office at the US Embassy in Abuja later—to move our program goals forward.”
Applauding the agency’s explosive institutional growth under its current leadership, Tolliver added:“Lastly, I want to say big congratulations on all the successes over the past months with your leadership and under your leadership. It is phenomenal how much this organization has grown, the accolades that are now shown in the media. So, I do want to recognize that.”
Responding, Marwa congratulated Tolliver on his new appointment as INL Country Director in Nigeria, while expressing deep gratitude for the enduring, high-impact security alliance between Nigeria and the United States government.
The NDLEA boss specifically thanked the INL, alongside other pivotal US agencies—including the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), US Africa Command (AFRICOM), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)—for their unwavering, multi-dimensional support.
Marwa stated:
“I would like to state very clearly that whatever successes that we have had in this Agency, the INL is part of it. No question about it. You have assisted us in the past with vehicles; we need operational vehicles to move. And I recall that in 2021, when I assumed the chairmanship of this Agency, one of the earliest actions that I took was to distribute INL-provided vehicles to the command’s.
“Now, the forensic labs: we used to have just the one in Lagos for the whole country. The INL modernized it with new equipment, better-constructed buildings, and on top of that, the additional forensic laboratories that were introduced here in Abuja to cater for the North, and another one in Enugu to cater for the South-East and South-South, the INL supported us with some of the equipment.
“These forensic labs have been central to our law enforcement efforts. In fact, with the seizure about two months ago and dismantlement of the meth lab in the deep forest of Ogun State, we relied on the forensic equipment to determine the precursor chemicals. And we discovered one of the precursor chemicals was in fact for the production of Fentanyl, which is bad news.”
“Nobody wants to hear that word. It’s bad enough to be dealing with meth laboratories and we very much appreciate that contribution. Without these modern tools, that would have gone unnoticed because it was just a small part of the precursor chemicals. That was really very important.”
To consolidate these gains, Marwa made a strategic pitch for expanded US intervention, rallying for intensified bilateral support in tactical logistics and specialized personnel training to stay ahead of transnational drug cartels
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