Celebration of International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking

During the celebration of the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, June 26, the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) and the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) of the Organization of American States (OAS) jointly organized the conference “Drug Consumption Policies based on Evidence: advances, challenges, and perspectives.”

The opening was conducted by Jon Andrus, PAHO/WHO Deputy Director, and Álvaro Briones, Director of Policies and Programs Unit, Secretary for Multidimensional Security of the OAS. Luis Alfonzo, PAHO/WHO Regional Adviser on Substance Use, and Alexandra Hill, CICAD-OAS Demand Reduction Chief, spoke about PAHO-CICAD Joint Regional Cooperation Program for the Reduction of Drug Demand.

A panel of experts discussed whether solid evidence can be obtained on drug consumption to support the development of substance use policies with a public health approach.