Marijuana, for example, is predominantly a working class drug of choice. Heroin, on the other hand, is a rich man's drug. Apart from the cost factor, the impact of heroin abuse in the region has been mitigated by a needle phobia in the region. Like production, drug abuse differs from place to place. The greatest drug abuse problems are in Puerto Rico, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Belize, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, and in parts of the Eastern Caribbean.
Money laundering is another aspect of the narcotics phenomenon.
They also made 116 arrests and gathered a wealth of intelligence on world-wide drug trafficking and money laundering operations. Caribbean countries are vulnerable to money laundering because of their relative political stability, bank secrecy, low taxation, and relatively well-developed telecommunications. Yet, drugs do not constitute a security matter simply because of the multidimensionality of drug operations. Cooperation is Critical Caribbean countries cannot cope alone with the threats presented by drugs. Due to the transnational nature of the drug trade, collaboration between states is a practical necessity if not always a political desire.