An investigation by the African Press Agency has uncovered an expanding methamphetamine network across southern Africa, with Mexican cartel-linked chemists establishing industrial-scale laboratories and transferring technical expertise to local criminal operators. The network is largely intended to supply lucrative drug markets in Australia and New Zealand, where methamphetamine prices are reportedly 65 to 100 times higher than in the United States. Authorities warn that increased production is also fuelling methamphetamine consumption in Africa.
The investigation centred on a laboratory on a game farm near Swartruggens, one of at least seven major methamphetamine facilities discovered across southern Africa during the past two years. Police believe Mexican chemists sent by the Sinaloa cartel established the laboratory to supply Australia and New Zealand. When police raided the Swartruggens laboratory in May, it was capable of producing five tons of methamphetamine a month. Thirteen people were arrested, including five Mexican nationals identified by police as chemists.
Investigators believe the Mexican chemists began manufacturing crystal meth shortly after entering South Africa on three-month tourist visas in March 2025. Since 2024, South African police have arrested 16 Mexicans during raids on methamphetamine laboratories. Brigadier Devon Naicker, head of the South African Narcotics Enforcement Bureau, said Mexican specialists often establish laboratories before leaving trained chemists behind to continue production. In other cases, they teach local operators how to manufacture methamphetamine and return periodically to monitor the operations.
A similar arrangement was discovered at a Krugersdorp laboratory dismantled in February 2024. The five Mexican suspects arrested at Swartruggens claimed they had been blindfolded and held hostage after arriving in South Africa. However, an investigator rejected their claims, saying they had allegedly been provided with expensive food, alcohol, and other comforts. Police have also uncovered specialised equipment used in the laboratories, including large handmade reaction tanks capable of holding several hundred litres.
The investigation also highlighted links between Mexican cartels and organised crime in Australia and New Zealand. Australian police confirmed increased targeting of their illicit drug market by Mexican cartels. Police in both countries have previously linked local Comancheros biker gangs to drugs supplied by the Sinaloa cartel. A similar pattern has emerged in Nigeria, where meth laboratories suspected of links to the Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation cartels have reappeared.
Experts warn that pressure on Mexican cartels in the Americas may be encouraging expansion into Africa. Brookings Institution researcher Vanda Felbab-Brown said the continent provides opportunities for cartel operations and corruption. In Mozambique, two Mexican nationals were arrested in April, while chemicals used to produce meth were later found at an alleged local accomplice’s home. UNODC official Antonio De Vivo warned that traffickers sometimes pay middlemen in drugs, encouraging local sales.
Mozambique is seeing a growing impact of synthetic drugs on its communities, with hospital admissions linked to drug use rising 38% last year to more than 32,280. Former addict Paulo Ferrao said detox centres near Maputo are seeing increasing numbers of methamphetamine cases. The country’s position along trafficking routes and its porous borders make it a prime transit point, but officials say it has also become a consumer of illicit drugs, with users like Elton Raimundo Joaquim seeking help for addiction.
Key points
- Mexican cartels are expanding their operations into southern Africa to supply methamphetamine to Australia and New Zealand.
- The network is fuelling increased methamphetamine consumption in Africa, with Mozambique seeing a significant rise in hospital admissions linked to drug use.
- Experts warn that pressure on Mexican cartels in the Americas may be encouraging expansion into Africa, where corruption and opportunities for cartel operations exist.
