Apart from a renewed focus on prevention and public education, the National Drug Council (NDC) continues to advocate for tough legislation and strong policies to bolster the countries efforts in tackling substance use, misuse and abuse.
[blockquote]“One of our main goals is to reach out to students. As such, we have recently completed our review of the National School Misuse of Drugs Policy and we will continue to advocate for drug education as part of the National Curriculum and addressed the following,” [blockquote-footer]said NDC Coordinator and Executive Director Joan WestDacres.[/blockquote-footer] [/blockquote]
[blockquote]“Programmes need to be on-going, age appropriate, consistent with the culture of drug abuse and locally relevant, which is why we would like to see drug education become part of the curriculum for all students K-12,” [blockquote-footer]Mrs. West-Dacres explained.[/blockquote-footer] [/blockquote]
This work is of course supported by the NDC’s robust research which provides the council with a reliable base on which to ground policy and programme development and requests.
[blockquote]“We collect and collate data annually, giving us a reliable view of the true drug use situation in the Cayman Islands,” [blockquote-footer]Mrs. West-Dacres noted.[/blockquote-footer] [/blockquote]
Some of the NDC’s publications include the Cayman Islands Student Drug Use Survey which contains information on student alcohol, tobacco, ganja and other illicit drug use as well as quarterly and annual reports to the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB).
Apart from research and public education, the NDC also have the responsibility for the oversight (monitoring and evaluation) of the implementation of the National AntiDrug Strategy 2009-2013 (NADS).
The NADS is a comprehensive document that provides strategic direction for the development of programmes, allocation of funds, and a means to monitor and evaluate the implementation of the plan and the effectiveness of the programmes developed to address the drug issues throughout the Cayman Islands. It addresses both illegal (marijuana, cocaine) and legal substances (alcohol and tobacco).
[blockquote]“In all these tasks, we believe in building strong relationships with all stakeholders and we meet on a regular basis other departments such as Customs, Education Services as well as with other interest groups such as the Mental Health Task Force. Our strength lies in our multi-faceted approach to curbing drug abuse and we hope to continue our strong partnerships with all,” [blockquote-footer] Mrs. West-Dacres concluded.[/blockquote-footer] [/blockquote]
The NDC is an independent statutory body set up under the National Drug Council Law (1997) to co-ordinate anti-drug measures in the Cayman Islands through policy and prevention, research and information and monitoring and evaluation.
As such, its main functions include reviewing drug use trends, formulating and developing drug prevention and rehabilitation policies and programmes; drug-use surveys and public education.
For more information on the NDC’s programmes, go to www.ndc.ky or call 949-9000 to schedule a workshop. Or visit them at #17 Caymanian Village, North Sound Way.