They are now considered the most dangerous rivers in Amazonia – not because of navigation difficulties or perilous rapids, but because of the worrying boats that frequent them. The "rios de cocaina" (cocaine rivers), as they are known in Brazil, have become the preserve of drug traffickers.

The Amazon and 15 of its tributaries have earned this sinister nickname since the publication on January 30 of a note devoted to the new drug trafficking routes. The document, published by the Amazônia 2030 collective, a synthesis of a study produced in 2024 by the German research center IZA, reports the growing grip of organized crime along the rainforest's waterways.

These rivers, where the white powder now flows freely, include well-known rios (Negro, Madeira, Acre, etc.) as well as more discreet waterways, such as the Abuna, which flows for "only" 375 kilometers, compared to 1,500 kilometers for others. All these rivers link the cocaine-producing regions of Bolivia, Peru and Colombia to the major Brazilian ports on the Amazon and Atlantic coasts.

This stranglehold has direct and tragic consequences for local populations. In order to transport, store and protect the drugs, traffickers recruit local people living along the rivers as boat pilots, security guards and handlers. At their peril.

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