DRUG FIGHT NOT A ONE-MAN JOB

IF the war against substance abuse is going to be won, then it should
not just be left to one organisation or the Government, but a
multistakeholder approach is needed.

This means that the private sector has to get involved in a number of
areas. First, parents need to take charge of the situation and pay
attention to their children. There is an area where parental
guidance and family support has fallen short,said Attorney General
Dale Marshall.

He added that employers must also see that they have a role to play
in this fight as drug abuse is not just a problem for school
children, but for adults as well and therefore, it can affect the
productivity of the workforce. Accordingly, these groups must work
with the National Council on Substance Abuse (NCSA).

Speaking to the media after a tour of NCSA headquarters yesterday,
where an open day was held to recognise International Day against
Drug Abuse and Illicit Drug Trafficking, he said that just as the
work of the police officers in ensuring drug interdiction is
important, so too is that of the NCSA in making sure that the demand
for drugs is cut down and young people are steered away from
substance abuse. Marshall said that in order for the NCSA to
effectively and efficiently do this job, they require more resources
as they are operating on a budget under $2 million, within which they
have to target persons of all age groups to encourage them to stay
away from drugs.

Additionally, the organisation operates with only 20 staff members.
However, they are well supported with 100 volunteers.

Marshall assured the media that the issue of the shortage of staff
and the need for more funding, which rests with the Ministry of
Finance, would be looked into.

The work of the NCSA is so pivotal to the commitments that this
Government has given to the people of Barbados, that they will
receive all of the funding that it can reasonably require to
discharge its responsibility.

Meanwhile, he praised the NCSA board for the passion that they have
shown in their fight against substance abuse. The prestige that
might come from sitting on a board is entirely irrelevant. They give
tremendous amounts of their time way beyond what one could reasonably
expect of individuals and they do this because they have a clear
understanding that their goal is to ensure that they dont lose the
investment that they have made in this country as adults, that their
parents have made and that their foreparents have made.

However, he reiterated that while it is good to have institutions
whose focus is on drug prevention, the community also needs to get involved.

We can set up all of the structures that we want to fight drug and
substance abuse, but I think the harsh reality for us is that except
our communities stand side by side with institutions such as this, it
is a fight that we are not going to win,he affirmed.