Drugs and Development Hub

🌾 On #InternationalRuralWomensDay, we celebrate the crucial contributions of #RuralWomen, who are at the heart of food security, sustainable livelihoods, and community resilience. Yet, despite their impact, many rural women continue to face significant challenges— from limited access to land and financial services to fewer leadership opportunities. That’s why fostering gender-responsive development is essential for creating equitable opportunities! To support these efforts, the guidelines from Programa COPOLAD III "Addressing Gender in Alternative Development Projects-a Practical Guide" provide practical tools to tackle the unique obstacles women face in #DrugCropCultivation areas, such as insecurity, stigma, and limited resources. 🔗 Discover more about how gender-responsive approaches are making a difference: https://lnkd.in/efCi435G

Today, on 👩🌾 🌍 #InternationalDayforRuralWomen 2024, we celebrate the resilience and contributions of rural and indigenous women for our collective future. From building #ClimateResilience and conserving biodiversity to nurturing the land, these women are driving progress toward #GenderEquality and empowerment. #Ruralwomen play a crucial role in biodiversity conservation and sustainable land management. They lead grassroots advocacy, preserve traditional knowledge, and uplift their communities. In regions like the Ecuadorian Amazon, Sierra Tarahumara, Cameroon’s Yabassi forests, and North Sumatra, they protect nature despite facing environmental crimes and numerous challenges. 💡 For more insight explore the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime paper: 📑 Impact of Biodiversity Loss and Environmental Crime on Women from Rural and Indigenous Communities:  https://lnkd.in/enira_Dr

🔥 📰  Hot in Press 🔥 The policy brief by the 🌍 West African Epidemiology Network on Drug Use (WENDU) details regional #DrugUse trends for 2023. Based on recent treatment records across 11 focal countries, the most commonly used substances include alcohol, cannabis, opioids, cocaine, pharmaceutical products, kush, and polydrug combinations. #Cannabis and cannabis-related substances are the most prevalent, accounting for 28% of treatment cases. #Kush, a cannabis derivative mixed with #SyntheticDrugs like #fentanyl and #tramadol, poses a significant #PublicHealth risk Dr. Mohammed Hammed, ECOWAS Commission Young Professional, emphasizes, “The kush epidemic poses a significant risk of spreading across the region, thereby requiring significant public awareness.” While these figures reflect the capacity and priorities of drug #LawEnforcement, they also provide indirect insights into drug supply and seizure trends in the region. The document also provides relevant recommendations to address these challenges.

My recently published report on synthetic drugs examines, among other things, the potential for market evolution influenced by the use of AI and machine learning, and the myriad consequences of our current ignorance around just how pervasive synthetic drug production, distribution and use remains around the globe. Too often we think we know more than we really do about such things, a circumstance that is exacerbated by the fact that more often than not we’re not even looking for that which we don’t see.

📈 How did the Kinahan organized crime group rise to the top of Europe’s cocaine trafficking network? 🎙️In this #Underworlds episode, Mark sits down with Nicola Tallant, renowned investigative journalist and author of "Cocaine Cowboys: The Deadly Rise of Ireland's Drug Lords." 🇮🇪 They dive into how Christopher Kinahan Snr., a man from a comfortable middle-class background, and his two sons built a drug empire that shook Europe, fueling violence, assassinations, and eventually creating a "European Super Cartel." Nicola’s deep knowledge and years of reporting on organized crime bring incredible insights into this explosive story. Listen to the full episode for a behind-the-scenes look at the dark side of #Ireland's Celtic Tiger boom and the rise of the Kinahan Cartel. 🎧 https://buff.ly/3Y2wPRj 📹 https://buff.ly/3Bxkagm

🔎 A recent study has highlighted the potential for #coca cultivation to expand in #CentralAmerica, particularly in Honduras and Guatemala. Nearly 47% of northern Central America (including Honduras, Guatemala, and Belize) has the right climate and soil for coca cultivation. In addition to the established criminal networks in the region facilitate the production and trafficking of #cocaine, making it easier for coca cultivation to take root.

📄 #ResearchAlert To achieve sustainable change, it is essential to link #AlternativeDevelopment with the cultural and traditional practices of #indigenous communities. While illicit coca cultivation can lead to deforestation and biodiversity loss, the shift to licit commodity crops may also result in unintended consequences if proper safeguards and protection measures are not in place. Therefore, Alternative Development initiatives must prioritize #biodiversity conservation as one of their key goals.   Research by JUAN JOSE PALACIOS VEGA, Manuel Martín Brañas, Sydney Silverstein, Ricardo Zárate Gómez, Nick Kawa, and Margarita del Águila Villacorta explores the effects of agriculture in Ticuna indigenous communities. Plants like the #Ischnosiphon species—vital for cultural ecosystem services such as weaving - are increasingly threatened by both coca and licit agricultural expansion, impacting livelihoods and eroding cultural practices linked to the forest. ➡️ https://lnkd.in/egmKbhpk   As pointed out in the UNODC #PracticalGuide Alternative Development and the Environment, integrating local, indigenous knowledge into project design is essential. Understanding cultural heritage is necessary to create  sustainable and culturally mindful development programs that preserve both biodiversity and traditional practices. ➡️ https://lnkd.in/e39QRiZ8 LSE Press #SustainableDevelopment #CulturalHeritage #IndigenousRights #EnvironmentalConservation #IllicitEconomies

The “Züri Can” pilot project, launched to explore regulated #cannabis sales in #Zurich, is showing promising outcomes after its first year. The project involves 2100 participants purchasing cannabis legally through selected pharmacies and social clubs, with a strong focus on #HarmReduction and health protection. ✅ A key success factor has been the trusted relationship between participants and sales staff, allowing for personalized consultations that focus on lower-risk consumption. ✅ 90% of participants rate the sales staff as competent, and many are making use of the free consultations with both sales personnel and study physicians to reflect on their cannabis use and engage in harm reduction practices. ✅ Over half of participants use cannabis 4+ times per week, and a majority rate their health as good. 📌 The study continues until October 2026 – find out more about the results here (available in German): https://lnkd.in/dgTEC-Wm #DrugPolicy #HarmReduction #Cannabis

The “Züri Can” #pilotproject, launched to explore regulated cannabis sales in Zurich, is showing promising outcomes after its first year. The project involves 2100 participants purchasing cannabis legally through selected pharmacies and social clubs, with a strong focus on harm reduction and health protection. ✅ A key success factor has been the trusted relationship between participants and sales staff, allowing for personalized consultations that focus on lower-risk consumption. ✅ 90% of participants rate the sales staff as competent, and many are making use of the free consultations with both sales personnel and study physicians to reflect on their cannabis use and engage in harm reduction practices. ✅ Over half of participants use cannabis 4+ times per week, and a majority rate their health as good.  The study continues until October 2026 – find out more about the results here:   https://lnkd.in/dgTEC-Wm #DrugPolicy #HarmReduction #Cannabis 

🌍 Did you know the #cocaine trade is now the fastest-growing illicit drug market in #Africa?   The #AfricaOrganisedCrimeIndex 2023 reveals that since 2019, the cocaine trade has surged 📈 more than any other criminal market on the continent. 🔺 Field research in East and Southern African countries suggests that a large volume of cocaine is moving to and through these regions, and at the same time the use of the drug in their local markets also increases. 🔺 West Africa had the highest score for cocaine trade on the continent and has maintained its position as a prominent transit hub for cocaine from South America to Africa. 🚤 Deepening influence of the organized crime is fueling the expansion of the criminal markets and places enormous strain on #publichealth systems and heightens #security concerns in the region. 📖 Read the full report to dive deeper into how cocaine and other illicit markets are impacting Africa’s security landscape ➡ https://lnkd.in/eJbBV-MU