Director-General/Executive Director
Ladies and gentlemen,
Dear participants,
I’m very happy to be with you today to open this year’s UNODC Youth Forum and it’s wonderful to see so many young participants with us today.
The issue of preventing drug use among youth is one that is very close to my heart.
When I was Minister of Social Solidarity in my home country Egypt, I worked with young people in building the resilience of youth against drug use and raising awareness on the importance of prevention.
So when I joined the UN Office on Drugs and Crime in 2020, I was keen to attend and speak at this Forum, because it gives me an opportunity to hear directly from you, the younger generation, about what you are doing, and to learn from your ideas and your initiatives that are helping to promote safer and healthier livelihoods for all young people.
This Forum is an ideal platform to do this, bringing youth together from different corners of the world, and today we have 35 members of the Youth Forum with us representing 27 countries.
We also have some members from Young UN here who have been working with senior management in UNODC to exchange ideas and learn from one another.
As young changemakers, your determination, energy, and passion are our strongest assets in calling for action, at a time when it is desperately needed.
Around the world, drug use is on the rise.
According to UNODC’s latest World Drug Report, over 296 million people used drugs in 2021, an increase of 23 per cent over the previous decade.
Drug trafficking routes are diversifying, while new variants of synthetic drugs are flooding international markets, and many criminal networks promote the use of drugs through various channels.
Youth are particularly affected.
In Africa, for example, which is home to over 650 million young people, 70 per cent of people receiving drug treatment are below the age of 35.
Since joining UNODC, I have made it a priority to work with youth and for youth, to address the challenges posed by drug use.
This has also been one of the key pillars of UNODC’s corporate Strategy for 2021-2025.
I have also appointed for the first time a youth advisor in Africa to support youth programs in the continent.
We have also been working with the Drug Abuse Prevention Center in Japan, which provides grants from youth, by youth, to youth, and which has helped raise millions of dollars over the years.
In 2023 alone, the programme funded 13 projects in 12 low- and middle-income countries, benefiting over 23,000 youth by promoting healthy lifestyles and drug prevention activities.
But we must do more to reach out to young people and to support resilience against substance use as of adolescence and in early childhood.
This starts with education.
By sensitizing young people to the risks and consequences of substance use.
By giving them the essential competencies needed during this important stage of their development.
And by teaching them the skills to think critically and challenge misinformation, to resist peer pressure, to support other youth at risk, and to be equipped with all the life and social skills needed to overcome the adversities they may face.
In this regard, I am glad to announce to you that we are developing a new prevention tool called Friends in Focus, which is designed to pass on these life and social skills to the younger generation, peer to peer, youth to youth.
We will be piloting the Friends in Focus programme throughout 2024, to help youth learn about prevention and contribute to a more positive environment for themselves, their families, and their friends.
I am equally proud to let you know that during the 67th session of the CND, we will also be launching our CHAMPS initiative – Children Amplified Prevention Services.
CHAMPS is a new initiative by UNODC that calls for amplifying services that strengthen the resilience of children, from birth up to the age of 18, leaving no child behind.
You will be hearing more about CHAMPS throughout the CND, and we look forward to working with you to advocate for this prevention model in your own countries.
We are always keen to engage young people in our main intergovernmental meetings, such as this Youth Forum on the side-lines of the CND.
In the past, this Forum has paved the way for new ideas and solutions.
In 2019, participants developed a handbook on involving young people in prevention work.
And in 2021, participants published the first in a series of Youth Initiative Magazines, providing an avenue for young people to share ideas and best practices on substance use prevention.
I encourage you all to keep coming up with new initiatives, and to take advantage of the high-level segment of the Commission, which this year is bringing together senior representatives from government, civil society, and the scientific community, under one roof.
This is an opportunity to make your voices heard at the highest level and to present your ideas and initiatives directly to policy-makers, so I look forward to the statement that you will agree on at this year’s CND.
In fact, to progress in addressing the world drug problem we need to see you, listen to you, and work with you.
You will be affected the most by the decisions that are made over the next days.
Dear friends,
It is our responsibility to leave behind a better world for the coming generation.
As a proud mother of three children and a grandmother, I’m committed to leaving behind a better world for them and their children.
And as the head of UNODC, I’m committed to working with you to create a safer and healthier world for you and all young people.
Thank you and I wish you fruitful discussions in the days ahead.