KABUL, JUN 26: The International Day Against Drug Abuse, the Ministry of Public Health announced during a meeting held on Wednesday for this occasion that since the Islamic Emirate’s return to power, over 54,000 drug addicts have been treated.
Abdul Wali Haqqani, Deputy Minister of Public Health, said that there are 61 treatment centers for drug addicts in the country, with the capacity to treat 30,800 patients annually.
The Deputy Minister of Public Health told TOLOnews: “Our 61 hospitals are active across the country for the treatment of addicts and have managed to treat 54,346 patients since the Islamic Emirate took over.”
Meanwhile, the Deputy Ministry for Counter Narcotics of the Ministry of Interior also reported that in 1402 (solar year), they gathered and transferred 33,226 drug addicts from across the country to treatment centers.
According to officials in the Deputy Ministry for Counter Narcotics, among those gathered last year, over 1,800 returned to their homes after receiving treatment and vocational training.
During the meeting of the Ministry of Public Health, Shams Rahman Minhaj, representative of the Deputy Ministry for Counter Narcotics, said: “From the beginning of 1402 to the start of 1403 (solar year), 33,226 drug addicts were gathered from various provinces and introduced to treatment centers, with 1,810 of them graduating from technical training after treatment.”
The representative of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Afghanistan spoke about the organization’s support and its partners for drug treatment centers in Afghanistan.
Luo Dapeng, the representative of WHO in Afghanistan, said: “WHO in collaboration with the UNODC and also UNDP and our great implementing partners and partner NGOs, now supporting a number of focused drug addiction treatment centers and opioid substitutional therapy centers across Afghanistan.”
Anubha Sood, the UNODC Representative in Afghanistan, emphasized investing in the drug treatment sector and providing equitable treatment of services throughout Afghanistan.
The UNODC Representative in Afghanistan, said: “We must acknowledge the large number of people with drug use disorders in the country and who require comprehensive and effective treatment.”
June 26 is commemorated as the International Day Against Drug Abuse to raise awareness about the harms of drugs and to develop strategies to combat drug abuse. This year, the day was observed under the theme “Stop stigma and discrimination – strengthen prevention.”
