The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intensified its war on narcotics by putting its Canine Unit through specialised retraining aimed at sharpening detection skills against increasingly sophisticated trafficking networks.
The intensive programme, held at the NDLEA Canine Unit Facility in Lagos in partnership with Germany’s Bundeskriminalamt (BKA), focused on advanced obedience, scent imprinting, search patterns and real-world interception techniques. German experts Andreas Roscher and Jacqueline Shüler led the sessions, transferring international best practices to Nigerian handlers and their service dogs.
Eleven Canine Unit personnel took part, including the Unit Commander, two veterinary doctors and eight dog handlers with their animals. Five additional officers from NDLEA Lagos Commands who expressed interest in joining the unit also joined the course.
Practical drills moved beyond the training ground. Handlers and dogs conducted simulation exercises at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport baggage hall, APM Terminals Apapa and the MMIA NAHCO export shed. Sessions also covered handler safety and tactics for deploying canine assets in high-risk environments.
NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), described the exercise as further proof of the agency’s determination to build a professional workforce capable of matching evolving trafficking methods.
“Our canine teams remain one of the most potent assets in our detection and interdiction efforts, and this is why we will continue to invest in their retraining and welfare,” Marwa said in a statement issued on Saturday by the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.
He credited the agency’s recent successes in uncovering concealed drugs at airports, seaports and border points largely to the dedication and heightened instincts of its dogs and handlers. The German partnership, he added, strengthens that capacity and aligns operations with global standards.
Marwa acknowledged ongoing challenges facing the unit, including shortages of service dogs, personnel and boarding facilities needed to cover Nigeria’s seaports, international airports and land borders. He said plans are already in motion to close these gaps and that the agency will consider making the refresher training an annual exercise.
