Banjul, The Gambia – On a humid March afternoon on the outskirts of Banjul, a woman known only as Saf* carries a basket of plants from her garden. Moving with urgency to avoid prying eyes, she makes her way to a hidden location, where the air is thick with the earthy scent of raw, unprocessed tobacco leaves waiting to be turned into the popular drug taba.
Suddenly, her phone rings. A customer. She smiles knowingly. “She’s one of my favourites because she keeps coming back,” says Saf, whose name is a code word that means “sweet” in Wolof.
