Director General/Executive Director
Distinguished participants,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Good morning and welcome to the Vienna International Centre.
My thanks to Ambassador Bakhet, the chair of the 62nd CND, for his opening remarks, and to Ambassador Wild and the Civil Society Task Force for organizing this event.
The Ministerial Segment at the 62nd CND session is less than one month away, and this is a timely opportunity to hear from civil society experts from around the world.
It is also a chance for Member States to learn more about the results of the Global Civil Society Consultation.
The results confirm that we share many of the same concerns, including the emergence of new psychoactive substances and the use of the dark web.
And we also agree on progress achieved over the past decade, with increasing funds and support for prevention and treatment services.
I was very glad to see that a majority of civil society respondents, in fact 75 per cent, believe that the UNGASS outcome document is a helpful tool for their work.
UNODC takes the outcome document as guidance and continues to support Member States to implement its recommendations. Civil society is an indispensable partner in our efforts to promote the health and safety of individuals, their families and communities.
I would like to thank all the civil society organizations, and their dedicated staff, working with us in the field to provide help to people in need, often in hardship conditions.
You know our work very well, so I will limit myself to highlighting a few developments in the area of science-based prevention and treatment
We have finalized a new prevention programme for parents that is specifically tailored to the needs of low-resource settings, including displaced populations. Such programmes are effective in preventing drug use and youth violence, and they can help support the development of children in very difficult circumstances and prevent mistreatment
Our Office is looking into new forms of pharmacological treatment for people with stimulant use disorders, a group for which only psychosocial options are presently available.
As you are no doubt aware, the Commission endorsed an important resolution on countering stigma and discrimination last year, and UNODC is starting a process to document good practices in this area, with a view to enhancing access to services for people who use drugs and with drug use disorders.
We are also focused on disseminating the handbook we produced with WHO on providing treatment as an alternative to conviction or punishment for people with drug use disorders in contact with the criminal justice system. I am happy to report that we have been able to facilitate more than one dialogue with national stakeholders on this very important topic, and we hope to further expand this work.
Furthermore, UNODC remains engaged in supporting efforts to comprehensively address the world drug problem through effective, rights-based law enforcement action, as outlined in the UNGASS outcome document.
This includes addressing links between drug trafficking and other forms of organized crime, including trafficking in firearms, cybercrime and money laundering.
We are also supporting alternative development to promote sustainable livelihoods away from illicit drug cultivation. Our successful programmes in Colombia and Peru are well known.
Soon, in association with the French coffee company Malongo, UNODC will launch a speciality coffee from our Alternative Development project in Shan State, Myanmar.
This is another tangible demonstration of how important it is to secure public-private partnership for development, and how our work directly links to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Drug challenges have a clear impact on peace and security, development and human rights, on our everyday lives and families and on relations between states.
Given these complexities, we need strong partnerships between diverse stakeholders, and the active involvement of grassroots NGOs is a very important part of this.
I therefore welcome the work of the Civil Society Task Force to support the preparations for the ministerial segment 2019. This carries on the very positive tradition of the UNGASS preparatory process, which benefitted greatly from wide-ranging, inclusive consultations.
Civil society has also played an active role in meetings focused on the UNGASS follow-up process, with more than 80 NGO representatives addressing intersessional meetings of the CND on all areas in the UNGASS outcome document.
Going forward, I urge you to make best use of the tools on offer, such as the NGO Marketplace, to share expertise and connect NGOs from around the globe.
I commend and thank you for your continuing dedication, and I encourage all of you to remain engaged as we work together to further strengthen international cooperation and balanced, evidence-based responses to global drug challenges.
Thank you.