Director General/Executive Director
23 June 2016
Excellencies,
Colleagues,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today we are launching UNODC's flagship publication the World Drug Report 2016.
The World Drug Report's presentation, conducted simultaneously in Vienna, New York and Geneva, follows the recent adoption by UNGASS of the landmark Outcome Document setting out concrete recommendations on tackling illicit drugs.
UNODC's Report furthers our appreciation of the situation through exhaustive research of the world's drug markets and trafficking routes, as well as an analysis of the devastating impact of drugs on health.
It can also be viewed as a special addendum to the Outcome Document, adding essential facts and figures to the overall global picture of illicit drugs.
These facts and figures clearly highlight the gravity of the world drug problem.
This rise of dependent drug users is extremely worrying as the number includes twelve million people who inject drugs, fourteen per cent of whom live with HIV.
The report also highlights the disastrous resurgence of heroin use in some parts of the world; a drug which kills more people than any other.
Another phenomenon is the Middle-Eastern amphetamine market. Recent captagon data shows that the manufacture and trafficking of this drug exploits porous borders, violent conflict and terrorism in some areas.
Other issues examined in the Report relate to prevention and care, human rights, gender, marginalisation, stigmatization, the crucial need for strong criminal justice systems, as well as how the cultivation and production of drugs impact the environment.
The "Darknet" and its use for drug trafficking is examined, and the illicit drug profits to finance terrorism and violent extremism is reviewed.
But today's launch is also about marking another important event: This is the first World Drug Report since the adoption of the 2030 development agenda.
The report's thematic chapter is dedicated to the interrelationship between the world drug problem and every aspect of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Here are just a few examples:
UNODC's review of the bonds between drugs and development generate fresh policy implications, including the need to create a twin track that embraces specialised drug interventions.
These policy implications also call for an expansion of our work based on the lessons learned from our extensive experience in the area of alternative development.
At the centre of these activities is the overwhelming need to support badly affected individuals and communities.
Having helped thousands of farmers and their families around the globe to achieve sustainable livelihoods, UNODC stands ready to assist in mainstreaming these activities into broader general development initiatives.
The report also calls for development-sensitive drug policies that are environmentally friendly, gender sensitive, and ensure that "no one is left behind", including problem drug users.
These are important because, as the Report shows, it is often the weakest and most vulnerable who pay the heaviest price for the world drug problem.
But, if we are to help, we must also develop effective criminal justice responses that are fully in line with fundamental human rights standards.
Exploring alternatives to incarceration, including non-custodial measures, and effective coordination between health and judicial systems is also necessary.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Due to the adoption of the 2030 development agenda, the agreement on the UNGASS Outcome Document, and UNODC publications such as the World Drug Report, we are seeing a gradual, but profound progression in the way drug policy is adopted and implemented.
This is particularly important as we move towards the target date of 2019.
I am glad to say that member states are at the forefront of these developments, and I count on your solid support in the future, as UNODC continues to develop efficient and effective services to assist you.
Thank you.