When it comes to hard drugs, Albania isn’t just a transit country, like it’s so often portrayed in the media – it’s also a hotbed of addiction and a growing drug epidemic. This week’s investigative show ‘Unpublished’, delves deep into the widespread use of cocaine in our country.

Cocaine has always been considered a lavish narcotic – a drug that’s exclusive to the rich – due to its high street price, ranging as much as 100 euros per gram – unlike other drugs like marihuana that have a much lower price range. Despite this, however, nothing will get in the way of young users in one of the poorest countries in Europe, or discourage them from consuming the drug and soon start to lose control and go on a horrific downward spiral.

Albania’s rapporteur for the EU in regards to narcotics use and toxicologist Esmeralda Thoma considers cocaine use in Albania, a completely separate category when it comes to drug use in general – in her words, it’s becoming “a growing epidemic”.

“For at least the past 3 to 4 years, our country, the U.S., and countries in Western Europe are talking about a growing cocaine epidemic, as the numbers keep hitting record highs” – said Thoma.

In terms of how consumption varies from city to city, when it comes to Fier and Elbasan, the consumption and sale of heroin prevail. In cities like Tirana and Durres, cocaine is the first drug of choice. Here’s a look at the most problematic areas, within the capital, when it comes to drug use.

“Neighborhoods aren’t that clean-cut. We’ve seen issues with drug use spread across the entire territory of Tirana. One of the areas with widespread consumption, which has also been part of several crackdowns is Parku. Another area would be the Arrow Palace, Blloku, which is dominant in terms of drug use during the weekends. Then there’s Fresku, Allias and Kamza,” – said Maringlen Beqo, chief of the Anti-Narcotics Department in Tirana.

“There are two types of cocaine – there’s Peruvian and what’s known as flex. The price for 1 kilo of Peruvian varies from 35 to 40 000 euros. Whereas flex ranges from 28 up to 35 000 per kilo,” – adds Beqo.

According to the anti-narcotics chief, there are many other entry points of this particular drug into our country, apart from the well-known Port of Durres. Upon reaching our country, the quality of the drug isn’t the same as its place of origin, however; the cocaine gets processed in a procedure known as cutting, where the drug gets mixed with other dangerous chemicals in order to expand in volume, which makes for more single-use doses and ultimately more value for money for the dealers that are on their way to making a fast buck.

The high price of cocaine, its freakish health risks and rapid addiction rate don’t seem to have much effect in slowing down young people in Albania from wanting to buy and consume it.

It seems clear, however, that there’s an urgent need in our country for an all-encompassing nationwide campaign, to raise awareness against the use of illicit drugs so that especially the young, can be informed about the detrimental effects of drug use on someone’s physical and mental health, as well as the massive setbacks they’ll have to face, when trying to get integrated back into society, once they have already become addicts.

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