LUSAKA, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Anti-drug authorities in Zambia arrested 5,241 people last year over drug-related offenses, a government spokesperson said on Monday.

The arrests represent a 9 percent reduction from the previous year's 5,757.

Drug Enforcement Commission spokesperson Theresa Katongo said of the total number of people arrested last year, 375 were females and 4,866 were males, including 295 juveniles aged between 11 and 17 years.

A total of 1,888 convictions were recorded during the year against 77 acquittals, with a further 2,804 cases pending in the courts of law at various stages, she said.

The authorities, she added, also seized 128.82 tons of cannabis plants and 22.3 tons of cannabis herbs during the year.

Other drugs seized in 2018 included 177.75 kg of miraa, 57.11 kg of ephedrine, 2.32 kg of cocaine and 4.12 kg of heroin.