United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

East Asia and Pacific

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		Project Code and Sector Project Background and Justification Immediate Objective, Outputs and Main Activities Execution modality and implementation arrangements
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AD/VIE/H68 - Technical Assistance to Treatment and Rehabilitation at Institutional and Community Level

1. Project Code and Sector

2. Project Background and Justification

The rapidly spreading drug abuse problem and associated HIV epidemic among injecting drug users has put the Government of Viet Nam in a very difficult situation, challenging it to address the need of improving drug abuse treatment outcomes and halting the further spread of HIV among IDUs by providing adequate services and improving their access to a range of various drug treatment and rehabilitation options.

Injecting drug use has become the primary mode of HIV transmission in Viet Nam. Prevalence of HIV infection among members of an IDU network can move very rapidly-from 0 to 60 percent within a very short time span-one to two years. It is difficult to estimate the size of the IDU problem. Official figures are based on the number of drug users officially registered, and probably represent a small proportion of all drug users. It is likely that fear of repressive measures (including imprisonment) drives most drug users underground, where they cannot be reached or counted by authorities.

The project will address the need to improve and further develop a range of HIV prevention and drug abuse treatment services for drug abusers in selected localities in Viet Nam. This will include HIV/AIDS prevention, as well as community-based and residential treatment and rehabilitation. The immediate objective is to assist Viet Nam to reduce drug abuse and related health and social consequences through improving the range and effectiveness of HIV prevention and drug treatment services accessible to injecting and other drug abusers. Emphasis will be placed on building on prior assistance and successful initiatives in Viet Nam, the region and elsewhere, initiation and promotion of a range of community-based services, and capacity building for community-based and institutional staff through training events and in-service training, including exchanges with other countries in the region and elsewhere. Attention will also be paid to the development of linkages between community-based and institutional drug abuse treatment services, as well as to general health and social services to meet other needs of the drug abusers.

The following group of individuals and institutions will benefit from the project activities:

• Drug dependent people, especially injection drug users and their families;
• Professionals working on drug abuse treatment and HIV prevention;
• HIV/AIDS prevention and drug treatment institutions
• Government and non-governmental organisation

3. Immediate Objective, Outputs and Main Activities

The overall objective of the UNODC demand reduction activities in Viet Nam is to assist the Government of Viet Nam in achieving significant and measurable results in reducing the demand for illicit drugs.

The immediate objective of the project is to improve the effectiveness of drug abuse treatment services and to reduce the adverse health and social consequences of drug abuse, including the prevention of transmission of HIV and other blood-borne infections among injecting drug users of selected project target areas through the diversification of HIV prevention and drug abuse treatment services.

Outputs:

Output 1:
Inception Phase: Analysis of situation and mapping of existing services

Output 2:
Functional national and local coordination groups on drug abuse treatment and HIV/AIDS

Output 3:
A critical mass of expertise anchored in practice in each of the targeted service delivery centres

Output 4:
Good practices for treatment of young people with ATS related problems developed

Output 5:
Evaluation and dissemination: Responsibilities transferred to national counterparts and experiences acquired systematized and lessons learned disseminated through UNODC publication, its web site and expert networking

4. Execution modality and implementation arrangements

The project is executed by the UNODC Country Office for Viet Nam in consistence with the Government of Viet Nam's National Strategic Programmes on HIV/AIDS and Drug Abuse.

An international project coordinator (IPC) is recruited by UNODC to manage the project. UNODC will also recruit a full-time national project manager and an administrative assistant cum project secretary cum interpreter. Some national professional project personnel (NPPPs) will be hired as national consultants working under the direction and supervision of the IPC to provide technical support and management of specific tasks which require professional expertise; for examples: to collect data and provide advisory consultation on the Government's policies and the sectoral regulations concerning drug treatment / rehabilitation and the related issues, to do research or surveys, to conduct national training workshops, or to facilitate outreach activities in the community. The Government of Viet Nam will nominate a National Project Director to coordinate project activities at the national level. The National counterpart is the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids, and Social Affairs (MOLISA), responsible for treatment and rehabilitation services.