The government is paying close attention to the increased production and trafficking of synthetic drugs in Jamaica.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness says the drugs such as molly and ecstasy are challenging to detect and eliminate.

He notes the trend in relation to these drugs in the USA, indicating this could easily occur in Jamaica.

The Prime Minister adds there is also concern about the rise in cocaine production in Colombia and increased cocaine seizures in Jamaica.

He also states that so far this year, approximately 7,762  kilograms of marijuana has been seized along the country’s southwestern border.

There have been two seizures of MDMA originating from the United States and the Netherlands.

There were four such seizures in 2022.

Meantime, Mr. Holness says the war on drugs must be fought parallel with the war on guns.

He says this must be done to save lives and should be done in a cooperative way.

Mr. Holness explains that Jamaica’s real interest lies in the control of illegal weapons that support the drug trade.

The Prime Minister was speaking at the start of the 37th international drug enforcement conference, underway at the Montego Bay Convention Center in St. James.

The three-day event is being held under the theme “disrupting transnational criminal organisations and their supply chains”.