The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has relocated its headquarters to a new facility, which is being developed in phases in the Jahi area of Abuja.
The NDLEA facility, which represents the first phase of the national headquarters project, is expected to be completed with the 2025 budgetary provisions. It was officially unveiled during an interdenominational service held within the complex on Wednesday.
Speaking at the brief ceremony, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Agency, Brig-Gen Mohamed Marwa (Rtd), said the development marks a significant phase in the transformation and recalibration of the NDLEA into a modern, result-oriented anti-narcotics agency. This process began in January 2021.
“I’m glad we have finally moved into this facility after initial budgetary constraints. Although this is only the first phase of the new headquarters project, we are hopeful that we will complete the process with next year’s budget,” he said.
“This is not 100% completed, but it is sufficiently functional for us to move in because I was determined to occupy it before the end of 2024. With the expansion of the Agency, the headquarters also needed to expand. In our old location, we could not accommodate everyone, and I had to reassign scores of officers due to a lack of space for them to work.”
“For this reason, the management took a unanimous decision that, while the facility is not 100% ready, we should proceed with a low-key inauguration ceremony. This will allow us to relocate some of our directorates still operating outside Abuja into one facility, consolidating our operations for efficiency, effectiveness, and seamless coordination,” Marwa added.
While stating that the old headquarters in Gimbiya, Garki, FCT, will continue to serve as an annex, the NDLEA boss expressed gratitude to President Bola Tinubu for his continued support and encouragement. He emphasized that this support has helped the Agency advance its mandate of curbing substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking in the country.
“The support we are receiving from our international partners, local stakeholders, especially President Tinubu, the National Assembly, the Judiciary, and the citizenry, is not just a recognition of our efforts but an encouragement to do more. I believe this new work environment will motivate us to surpass past achievements,” Marwa told the excited management staff, officers, and men of the Agency present at the ceremony.
He also commended his predecessor for initiating the process of securing a befitting headquarters for the Agency.
In his welcome remarks, the Secretary to the Agency, Shadrach Haruna, praised Marwa for providing inspiring leadership that has, in just three years, transformed the NDLEA into an agency of international renown in terms of professionalism, capability, and capacity.
He said, “The commissioning of our headquarters today is part of the incremental but well-laid agenda for the repositioning of the Agency by the chairman. We have witnessed monumental achievements since 2021, including increasing the Agency’s staff strength from 5,000 to 15,000. Other milestones include the promotion of officers, the opening of vacancies, the payment of accumulated allowances to staff and the widows of our fallen officers, the recent amendment of the Agency’s enabling law by the National Assembly, and many more.”
