At its 62nd session in March 2019 the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) adopted by consensus the Ministerial Declaration entitled “Strengthening Our Actions at the National, Regional and International Levels to Accelerate the Implementation of our Joint Commitments to Address and Counter the World Drug Problem”.

Following the format used for the thematic discussions held within the CND since 2016, Member States developed a multi-year workplan and will hold, every autumn, inter-active meetings aiming to address the challenges identified in the “stock taking”- part of the Ministerial Declaration. The complete workplan is available here.

The first of these thematic interessionals took place October 16-18 2019, in Vienna, Austria and covered the following challenges: (please visit https://vngoc.org/2019/06/26/4th-cnd-intersessional-2019/ for an overview of the topics that will be covered in the period 2019-24)

16.10.2019: That both the range of drugs and drug markets are expanding and diversifying;

17.10.2019: That the abuse, illicit cultivation and production and manufacture of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, as well as the illicit trafficking in those substances and its precursors, have reached record levels, and that the illicit demand for and domestic diversion of precursor chemicals are on the rise;

18.10.2019: That synthetic opioids and the non-medical use of prescription drugs pose increasing risks to public health and safety, as well as scientific, legal and regulatory challenges, including with regard to the scheduling of substances;

For each thematic segment 4-5 NGOs had the possibility to present their work and positioning.

16 October 2019 – Civil Society Speakers

Panelist: Mariana Souto Zabaleta (Instituto Latinoamericano de Seguridad y Democracia, Argentina), Statement

Simone Haysom (Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime, Global), Statement & Presentation

Mehmet Utku Öztürk (Turkish Green Crescent, Turkey), video message

Núria Calzada Àlvarez (Asociación Bienestar y Desarrollo, Spain), video message

17 October 2019 – Civil Society Speakers

Panelist: Pedro Arenas García (Corporación Viso Mutop-Observatorio de cultivos y cultivadores, Colombia), Statement (Spanish) & English version

Peggy Chukwuemeka (Parent-Child Intervention Centre, Nigeria), Statement

Bernice Auma Apondi (Voices of Community Action and Leadership, Kenya), video message

Sai Lone (Myanmar Opium Farmers’ Forum, Myanmar), video message

18 October 2019 – Civil Society Speakers

Panelist: Heloísa Broggiato Matter (International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care, Global), Statement & Presentation

Lauren Deluca (Chronic Illness Advocacy & Awareness Group, Inc., United States) video message

Chamrid Losdi Egnonna’m KPADONOU (West Africa Drug Policy Network, Ghana), video message

Gretchen Burns Bergman (A New PATH, United States), video message

Kayode Adedoye (Society for Development & Community Empowerment, Nigeria), Statement

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