Geopolitics of Cocaine
July 13, 2025
Coca is a native plant in northwestern South America.
Coca is used for medical and ritual purposes in indigenous cultures and as raw material for making cocaine (a highly addictive stimulant drug).
About 65% of its cultivation is concentrated in Colombia, with 27% in Peru and 8% in Bolivia.
Farmers in rural communities cultivate and harvest coca.
Their living and work conditions vary from country to country:
In Colombia and Peru, criminal groups use the threat of violence to take over farmers’ crops or buy them cheaply.
In Bolivia, local family clans buy farmers' surplus and sell it to criminal organisations.
After the harvest, chemists backed by criminal groups convert coca leaves into coca paste and then into cocaine in jungle labs.
Cocaine production boomed in the 1970s because of growing US demand, where it was becoming a fashionable nightlife stimulant.
Production declined briefly from the mid-2000s to mid-2010s, reaching record levels in the early 2020s.
In 2023, the global production of cocaine was approximately 3,700 tons, with an estimated 25 million users worldwide.
Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia have adopted different policies to combat illegal cocaine production and trafficking.
In Colombia and Peru coca cultivation is mostly illegal with some exceptions for indigenous use. Because of that, 99% of Colombia's and 90% of Peru's coca crops are illegal.
Bolivia set a national limit of 22,000 hectares of coca cultivation for domestic use. In 2022, the country had 29,900 hectares of coca, indicating that approximately 26.5% of the country's cultivation was illegal.
From 2000 to 2016, a multi-billion-dollar US-backed initiative to combat drug trafficking ran in Colombia, which included forceful crop destruction.
Colombia's coca crop decreased by 13% between 2000 and 2016.
In 2016, the Colombian government reached a peace deal with the FARC (a communist militant group that was also involved in cocaine production), ending a decades-long conflict.
Cocaine production continued after the FARC's demobilisation, as other trafficking groups, including FARC dissidents, took it over.
In 2022, the Colombian president initiated peace talks with these groups but did not reach an agreement with all of them.
In 2023, Colombia's coca cultivation reached a record of 253,000 hectares.
In the 2000s and the 2010s, Peru adopted strategies focused on destroying illegal crops, but this failed to slow down the cocaine business.
In 2017, Peru launched a plan to halve coca cultivation by 2021 and to promote alternative crops.
By 2021, however, Peru was cultivating a record high of over 80,000 hectares of coca.
Bolivia has adopted a community-based coca control model, in which:
Unions of coca farmers can fine, expel, or report members who violate the law.
The state supports crop destruction in cooperation with the farmers, rather than forceful destruction.
The state-run coca company directly buys the quota for legal domestic consumption from the farmers.
In 2023, Bolivia had approximately 31,000 hectares of coca cultivation, comparable to the 2010 levels.
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Cocaine trade
In 2022, North America accounted for 28% of global cocaine consumption, followed by Europe at 24%, Latin America at 22%, Asia at 12%, and Africa at 10%.
Europe's cocaine purity is reported at 53%-68%, which is higher than the US range of 40%-60%.
Higher purity = higher quality and price.
The average price of 1 gram of cocaine in Europe is $65, lower than the average of $120 in the US.
Criminal groups involved in trafficking, like Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel, Colombia's Clan del Golfo, and Italy's 'Ndrangheta, form networks of smaller interchangeable groups that allows operations to continue if one node is dismantled by police.
Routes
The Pacific sea route originating from Colombia and Peru and transiting through Mexico is the primary corridor for cocaine trafficking into the US.
The Atlantic sea route originating from Colombia, Ecuador, and Brazil is the primary corridor for cocaine trafficking into Europe, particularly in the ports of Algeciras (Spain), Antwerp (Belgium), and Rotterdam (Netherlands).
70% of the cocaine in Europe enters through Spain, Belgium or the Netherlands.
Drug smugglers transfer cocaine between small islands and empty beaches (known as island hopping), eventually reaching major ports in South America or the Caribbean, and loading the cocaine onto containers shipped globally.
Often, ports in French, British or Dutch foreign territories (like French Guiana) are used as origin points for shipping.
A secondary but rapidly growing maritime corridor connects Brazil to Europe, passing through West Africa.
Cocaine transported by air is typically less profitable due to limited volumes handled by traffickers.
War on Drugs
In 1971, the US launched the global war on drugs to combat trafficking and consumption.
Military assistance oversees
Forceful crop destruction
Incentives for growing alternative crops
The war on drugs has cost the US more than $1 trillion but global cocaine production has increased, reaching record levels in recent years.
Often, short-term supply reduction from crop destruction or seizures result in higher prices and greater profits for trafficking groups.
The war on drugs has not prevented armed conflicts between state forces and guerrilla groups.
During Colombia's drug war (1958-2016), 450,000 people were killed.
During Mexico's drug war (2006-ongoing), more than 300,000 people died.
Also, alternative crops promoted as substitutes for coca were less profitable, took longer to grow, and had smaller markets.
Empowering criminal groups
The annual cocaine trade, amounting to $110-130 billion, is a large source of revenue for criminal groups involved in trafficking.
These groups essentially operate as international logistics companies, connecting production markets to wholesalers worldwide.
These groups launder cocaine money by purchasing foreign currencies, cryptocurrencies, or making wire transfers to offshore accounts.
Then, they reinvest in:
New cocaine smuggling technologies, like drones or submarines.
Bribery of officials in European ports, at the US border elsewhere.
Other criminal activity.
Weakening states
Cocaine trafficking undermines state institutions, especially in transit countries, such as Venezuela, Ecuador or Guinea-Bissau in West Africa.
Venezuela
In the early 2000s, Venezuela supported the FARC because of shared ideology and rivalry with Colombia and the US.
This alliance allowed Venezuelan officials and military to collaborate with the FARC, contributing to the growth of narco-networks within the Venezuelan state.
Nowadays, a military network coordinated by political figures connected to President Maduro manages cocaine trafficking in Venezuela.
Ecuador
Ecuador has changed from one of the safest to one of the most dangerous countries in South America, with the number of murders rising from 1,725 in 2013 to over 8,000 in 2023.
In 2024, a major corruption case resulted in the arrests of 30 officials and revealed the involvement of political, military and judicial figures in drug trafficking.
Guinea-Bissau
In Guinea-Bissau, actors participating in cocaine trafficking, including South American importers, military personnel and local investors, operate under political protection.
This protection reduces competition and the need for territorial control, explaining the country's low levels of drug-related violence.
In 2022, the Supreme Court overturned the convictions of two people involved in the country's largest-ever narcotics seizure, raising concerns of traffickers' capture of the legal system.
Public health issues
In 2024, cocaine was used by 4.2 million people in Europe and over 5 million people in the US. While US consumption has remained stable, use in Europe is on the rise.
Cocaine impacted public health in Europe and the US by increasing the number of cocaine-related hospitalisations, mental health issues and long-term illnesses.
In 2022, across 19 European countries, cocaine was involved in about 1,000 overdose deaths, compared to about 27,000 in the US.
The difference comes from the fact that most of the US deaths involve a mixture of drugs, particularly with fentanyl, a potent synthetic opioid.
Climate change
Cocaine production accelerated climate change through soil degradation and deforestation.
Soil degradation occurs due to the massive use of gasoline and toxic chemicals in the cocaine production process.
Deforestation contributes to large amounts of CO₂ (carbon dioxide) emissions and disrupts the ecosystems that absorb and store it.
Global cocaine production is estimated to generate nearly 9 million metric tons of CO₂ annually, equivalent to the emissions of 1.9 million gasoline cars.
Between 2018 and 2022, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador lost 1.7 million hectares of forest, primarily due to the expansion of coca plantations, equivalent to 2.38 million football pitches.
Author Elia Preto Martini
Editor Anton Kutuzov
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