Guyana in 'bold' UN drug plan
by Terrence Esseboom
GUYANA yesterday signed an innovative two-year "bold" experimental pact with the United Nations Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) to tackle the nation's drug problem, especially among young people. The venture is a first for the Caribbean, officials said. Health and Labour Minister, Dr. Henry Jeffrey, Foreign Minister, Mr. Clement Rohee, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative here, Mr. Richard Olver and UNDCP Caribbean Representative, Dr. Michael Platzer, formalised the arrangement at a simple ceremony at the Foreign Ministry in Georgetown. The multi-million dollar agreement is backed by other UN agencies, including the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) and the Guyana Government. UNDCP is pledging some US$386,000 and the Guyana Government $12.5M to finance the scheme, scheduled to commence on May 1. Under the initiative, preventive education schemes targeting street children, others enrolled in learning institutions, school dropouts and persons living in squatting areas and depressed communities, will be pursued. A document about the programme explained that another component of the plan is the treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts, mainly in the city, Linden and New Amsterdam. It said 10,000 persons, including 400 street children, will be targeted for help in the two-year drive. A community-based day centre for drug and alcohol abuse rehabilitation support would also be established in the three communities. The initiative also includes developing a national health promotion programme for schools, drafting a policy paper to address the needs of children at risk in Guyana and training a corps of personnel "in various drug related disciplines to provide treatment, intervention, rehabilitation and counselling services, as well as ongoing training and awareness-raising programmes at community level". Olver said a "robust response" is needed to reduce the demand for drugs in Guyana, adding this will be impossible unless an inter-agency strategy is adopted. Backgrounding the scheme, he explained that in recent years, Guyana has become an important trans-shipment point in the drugs route to North America. "...of late it has been noticed that payment for services rendered for trans-shipment is being made not only in cash but also in kind, and drugs, including heroin, are now finding their way on the streets of Guyana," Olver said. He said the illegal activity is the sole means of livelihood for some families in some depressed local communities. "Drug trafficking is becoming a major source of income in some depressed communities and entire families are known to be involved. Women and children are particularly affected," the UNDP envoy stated. From May last year, 60 per cent of women imprisoned were jailed for drug-related offences, he said. The scheme is a "bold experiment relying on many actors" and if it succeeds, can be replicated in other local communities, Caribbean Community (CARICOM) states and other countries, Platzer commented at yesterday's formality. Asked about launching the programme in Guyana, Platzer explained that while the drug demand reduction strategy in CARICOM countries is uni-sectoral, "it is the commitment of Guyana to the multi-sectoral approach" that caused the UNDCP and other UN agencies to pilot the project here. As a consequence, the ministries of Health and Labour, Housing, Human Services and Social Security, the Police Force, the education system, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and all UN bodies in Guyana will network to achieve the objective. Ministers Jeffrey and Rohee also spoke at the ceremony, with the latter observing that although the enterprise was not a panacea for the drug plague here, it was nevertheless a worthwhile beginning of a series of measures to ameliorate the difficulties facing the nation. "The long-term objective of this programme is to build capacity in communities, NGOs and institutions to operationalise the National Drug Master Plan (1997-2000) within the context of an integrated approach to drug demand," the agreement said. 
|