Drug Abuse in the Global Village
Drug Abuse in North America

National Strategies relating to Drug Control in North America

CANADA
Canada Drug Strategy (CDS) is a data driven joint effort of all levels of government, business, law enforcement agencies, and professional and voluntary organizations to reduce both demand and supply of drugs. The Minister of National Health and Welfare leads and coordinates CDS which includes programmes of health promotion, prevention (based on social marketing through radio and other media), training, education, early identification of abusers and early intervention, a wide variety of treatment and rehabilitation modalities, research and information collection and control measures through legislation and enforcement (U.N. 1990, CDS 1987, 1992).

USA
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is the federal agency responsible for leading and directing the Nation's drug abuse research in the country (NIDA 1991).

            Since the announcement of the first National Drug Control Strategy in 1989, significant decreases have been registered in the number of abusers of all illicit drugs. Strategies have been developed that place emphasis on prevention, treatment and enforcement to induce American not to use illicit drugs at all. National objectives have been set, and by the early part of the next decade, the U.S. has committed itself to reducing overall drug abuse, as well as cocaine abuse, 65 per cent or more that 1988 rates. The goal of the strategy is to reduce demand through prevention and deterrence among new and casual abusers. This is accomplished through the application of complementary programmes involving education, community action, workplace initiatives, treatment of abusers and vigorous enforcement efforts to reduce the availability of illicit drugs (ONDCP 1992)