Islamabad: Pakistani pharmaceutical companies imported approximately 26.1 metric tons (26,100 kilograms) of Tramadol Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) between January 2024 and January 31, 2025, despite limited local demand, raising serious concerns among regulatory authorities.
This quantity far exceeds Pakistan’s legitimate medical needs, as only 50mg and 100mg Tramadol tablets are legally permitted for production and medical use, officials in the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) told The News on Monday.
The excessive importation strongly suggests that a significant portion of the raw material is being diverted toward the illegal manufacturing of high-dose 225mg and 250mg Tramadol tablets, which DRAP has declared spurious and unregistered. These illicitly produced opioids are then smuggled to African countries, where they are widely abused for their stimulant-like effects.
Investigations reveal that this quantity of raw material is enough to produce approximately 210 million tablets of 50mg and 105 million tablets of 100mg if divided equally between both strengths. However, Pakistan’s actual need for Tramadol is only a fraction of this amount.
Authorities believe that much of this imported raw material has been funneled into the illegal production of counterfeit Tramadol brands, particularly the 225mg and 250mg doses, which have been banned in Pakistan.
Officials disclosed that Tramadol API is being imported from India, Switzerland, Germany, Great Britain, and Spain, with major consignments arriving from suppliers such as CHEMO S.A. (Lugano Branch), SAAM Deutschland GmbH, BMP Bulk Medicines, and Globe Chemicals GmbH.
The total value of these imports runs into millions of dollars, raising concerns over inadequate regulatory oversight in the pharmaceutical sector.
Authorities suspect that certain pharmaceutical companies are illegally producing high-dose Tramadol tablets, including Indian and unregistered brands such as T-225, Tramaking 225mg, New Royal 225mg and X-225, which are being smuggled to African countries like Nigeria and Sierra Leone, where they are widely abused as stimulants and narcotics.
Despite a ban on the export of Tramadol from Pakistan, some rogue manufacturers continue to produce and smuggle the drug under misdeclared shipments.
A senior DRAP official, speaking anonymously, revealed that several attempts have been made to raid suspected manufacturing sites in Karachi, but these efforts have been thwarted due to advance warnings allegedly leaked to manufacturers.
In 2022, the Sindh High Court (SHC) upheld DRAP’s ban on the export of Tramadol tablets, rejecting a petition filed by M/s Medisure Laboratories Pakistan (Pvt.) Ltd. and another pharmaceutical company, which sought permission to export the opioid to African markets. DRAP successfully argued that 225mg and 250mg Tramadol doses were primarily being misused for recreational purposes, fueling drug abuse, human trafficking, and organized crime in West Africa.
Authorities confirm that Tramadol is widely abused in African nations due to its euphoric effects, energy-boosting properties, and ability to suppress fatigue.
The drug has become a key component of the illicit narcotics trade, with reports suggesting that militants, insurgents, and criminal groups in Nigeria, Libya, and the Sahel region use Tramadol to endure prolonged combat and suppress pain, while laborers and youth consume it to increase physical endurance and delay exhaustion.
Tramadol is also frequently combined with alcohol, cannabis, and other substances, leading to severe addiction and fatal overdoses. Recent enforcement actions have uncovered staggering amounts of smuggled Tramadol. In March 2025, customs officials foiled an attempt to smuggle 5.6 million Tramadol tablets worth Rs2.8 billion from Karachi to Freetown, Sierra Leone. The consignment, falsely declared as towels, was intercepted at Karachi’s port following intelligence-based surveillance.
In February 2025, Pakistani authorities seized Indian-origin Tramadol worth Rs10 billion, believed to be part of a cross-border smuggling ring.
In response to the ongoing smuggling crisis, DRAP has proposed classifying Tramadol as a controlled substance under the Control of Narcotics Substances Act, 1997, to prevent its unauthorized production and abuse.
Authorities have also recommended stricter border controls and increased scrutiny of pharmaceutical companies involved in importing Tramadol API. Regulators have warned that failure to act swiftly could further tarnish Pakistan’s reputation in global pharmaceutical markets, as the country risks becoming a major supplier of illicit opioids.
As enforcement agencies intensify their crackdown, experts emphasize that a coordinated response between DRAP, FIA, and Customs is crucial to dismantling the sophisticated smuggling networks profiting from illegally manufactured Tramadol.