Except being one of the main cannabis-producing countries worldwide, also cocaine usage is alarmingly high among the Albanian population between 15 and 64. These are the finding of a series of reports published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
According to data from 2014 – the most recent data on cocaine usage in Albania – on an annual basis, cocaine is used by 2.5% of the population, followed by the United States at 2.3%.
Cannabis usage is at 5.6%, the highest in the region. Comparatively, amphetamines and XTC are used significantly less.
Albania is also the main trafficker of the cannabis, together with the Netherlands. In 2014, Albania produced 540 tons ofcannabis, while around 550,000 cannabis plants were destroyed.
Albanian criminal groups are also well represented in the drugs trade, smuggling heroin, cocaine, and cannabis. Albania is also a major transit country for heroin from Afghanistan.
