Promoting prevention strategies and policies

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59th session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs – Vienna 14-22 March 2016

escSeveral resolutions were  passed on gender drug-related policies, international standards of treatment, alternative development and health and social wellbeing.

One of great interest is Promoting prevention strategies and policies (E/CN.7/2016/L.11/Rev.1)
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Promoting prevention strategies and policies The Commission on Narcotic Drugs, Recalling the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961,1 that Convention as amended by the 1972 Protocol,2 the Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 19713 and the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988,4 Recalling also the Political Declaration adopted by the General Assembly at its twentieth special session5 and the Political Declaration and Plan of Action on International Cooperation towards an Integrated and Balanced Strategy to Counter the World Drug Problem,6 adopted during the high-level segment of the fifty-second session of the Commission and by the General Assembly in its resolution 64/182 of 18 December 2009, Recalling further its resolution 53/1 of 12 March 2010, entitled “Promoting community-based drug use prevention”, resolution 53/2 of 10 March 2010, entitled “Preventing the use of illicit drugs within Member States and strengthening international cooperation on policies of drug abuse prevention”, resolution 55/10 of 16 March 2012, entitled “Promoting evidence-based drug prevention strategies and policies”, and resolution 57/3 of 21 March 2014, entitled “Promoting prevention of drug abuse based on scientific evidence as an investment in the well-being of children, adolescents, youth, families and communities”,

Welcoming the outcome document of the United Nations summit for the adoption of the post-2015 development agenda, entitled “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”,7

Gravely concerned that the world drug problem continues to pose a serious threat to the health, safety and well-being of all humanity, in particular children and youth,

Fully aware that the world drug problem remains a common and shared responsibility that requires effective and increased international cooperation and demands an integrated, multidisciplinary, mutually reinforcing and balanced approach to supply and demand reduction strategies,

Recognizing that substance use disorder is a chronic, relapsing but preventable and treatable multifactorial health disorder with psychosocial causes and consequences, and stressing the need to provide a full range of policies and programmes that promote the prevention of drug use,

Recognizing also that preventing the illicit use of drugs is essential to reducing demand for drugs and ensuring social welfare, as part of a balanced approach to drug control,

Bearing in mind the need to adopt a comprehensive approach to drug use prevention that takes into account a gender perspective and focuses on individuals, families, communities and societies as a whole, in order to reduce and effectively address the negative consequences of the illicit use of drugs, Convinced that prevention that is based on scientific evidence and on a rigorous process of adaptation to socioeconomic circumstances can be a cost-effective approach to preventing the illicit use of drugs and other risk behaviours and is therefore a cost-effective investment in the well-being of all, including children, adolescents, youth, women, families, communities and societies,

Convinced also that international cooperation on the prevention of the illicit use of drugs, taking into account the principle of common and shared responsibility, can assist Member States, upon request, in the establishment of more comprehensive and scientific evidence-based strategies and policies, Recognizing the important role that relevant stakeholders, including civil society, can play by contributing to a complete picture of the drug situation and by identifying emerging trends at an early stage and providing planners and decision makers, as appropriate, with information that can assist in designing national and regional drug use prevention strategies,

Recognizing also the important role of the media in informing the public and disseminating knowledge on prevention measures through different modalities, such as social media,

Stressing the importance of taking into account applicable human rights obligations, such as the rights of children, in accordance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child,8 in the implementation of drug prevention programmes and policies,

Emphasizing the importance of implementing the International Standards on Drug Use Prevention, which constitute a relevant tool by summarizing the currently available scientific evidence and describing interventions and policies and their characteristics that have been found to result in positive prevention outcomes,

  1. Encourages Member States to continue developing, updating and evaluating national policies for the prevention of the illicit use of drugs, in particular among families, children and youth, taking into account the best available scientific evidence;
  1. Also encourages Member States to implement population-wide, targeted and indicated prevention measures to strengthen resilience among youth and children;
  1. Invites Member States to share their advances in prevention policies and strategies and information on their effectiveness, to promote international cooperation and dialogue;
  1. Urges Member States to provide political support, and appropriate resources, to efforts relating to the prevention of the illicit use of drugs and its adverse consequences;
  1. Invites Member States to promote the collection of data on drug use and epidemiology and to promote the use of international standards, such as the International Standards on Drug Use Prevention, to formulate effective prevention strategies and programmes;
  1. Encourages Member States to develop and implement prevention-specific policies and interventions aimed at the healthy and safe development of children and youth, who are particularly vulnerable to individual or environmental risks;
  1. Also encourages Member States to take into account gender and age when providing related services in the development of drug prevention strategies and activities;
  1. Urges Governments to address the misuse of pharmaceuticals by formulating and implementing effective, scientific evidence-based prevention strategies, as appropriate, in accordance with the three international drug control conventions;
  1. Calls upon Member States to implement comprehensive measures to prevent the illicit use of drugs from a perspective that considers the individual as well as the community and society as a whole, including through public health interventions;
  1. Encourages Member States to promote healthy lifestyles, such as through physical activity, sport and recreation programmes, to develop social skills and other protective factors, to promote education and awareness programmes in multiple settings, involving families, teachers, students, health professionals, community leaders and social workers, and to share good practices with the international community, and also encourages their dissemination;
  1. Emphasizes the need to develop and implement comprehensive drug use prevention programmes, using a multi-agency approach, such as through health, education and law enforcement authorities, as appropriate;
  1. Encourages Member States to include new psychoactive substances within the scope of prevention programmes and, if deemed necessary, to design specific prevention initiatives targeting this problem;
  1. Also encourages Member States to develop tailored prevention policies for new psychoactive substances, when appropriate, and to actively share information and expertise on effective interventions;
  1. Further encourages Member States to promote the development of scientific evidence-based interventions and policies to prevent and counter the illicit sale and purchase of internationally or nationally controlled substances and new psychoactive substances over the Internet, paying specific attention to the protection of specific groups, such as youth and indigenous peoples, and taking into account the International Standards on Drug Use Prevention;
  1. Urges Member States to be aware that social exclusion could contribute to the illicit use of drugs, poor health, poverty and inequality and that it is important to attend to the basic well-being of individuals in need, respecting their human rights and dignity, in order to effectively prevent the illicit use of drugs;
  1. Encourages Member States to take practical preventive measures to protect their populations from the illicit use of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances by providing them with opportunities to develop life skills, such as through vocational training, to enjoy equal positive and productive opportunities and to learn about supportive parenting;
  1. Encourages cooperation with universities, schools, other educational institutions, subject to domestic legislation, and civil society, as well as with relevant international organizations and programmes within the United Nations system, in accordance with their mandates, to develop prevention programmes, which include guidance on effective prevention strategies in communities and various school settings;
  1. Requests the Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime to report to the Commission at its sixty-first session on the measures taken and on the progress achieved in the implementation of the present resolution;
  1. Invites Member States and other donors to provide extrabudgetary resources for the purposes described above, in accordance with the rules and procedures of the United Nations.

1 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 520, No. 7515.

2 Ibid., vol. 976, No. 14152.

3 Ibid., vol. 1019, No. 14956.

4 Ibid., vol. 1582, No. 27627. 5 General Assembly resolution S-20/2, annex. 6 See Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 2009, Supplement No. 8 (E/2009/28), chap. I, sect. C.

5 General Assembly resolution S-20/2, annex.

6 See Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 2009, Supplement No. 8 (E/2009/28), chap. I, sect. C.

7 General Assembly resolution 70/1.

8 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1577, No. 27531.

FDFE
FDFE
Foundation for a Drug-Free Europe was formed in March 2004 with the firm purpose of preventing and stopping debilitating drug use through educating non-users concerning the harmful effects that drugs can inflict upon the body, mind and personality, and by finding and directing existing users to programmes that can help them achieve comfortable abstinence for life.

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