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US report highlights Guyana’s lack of strategy to address drug rehab

May 27, 2017 News

The United States Department of State recently brought to light the fact that Guyana still remains without a comprehensive demand reduction strategy to adequately address drug rehabilitation.
In its latest report, International Narcotics Control Strategy Report Volume I, the Department noted that marijuana is the most widely used drug in Guyana, followed by cocaine.
The Department said that the Guyana National Council for Drug Education, Rehabilitation, and Treatment, within the Ministry of Public Health, is the single government body responsible for addressing demand reduction. It stated that non-governmental organizations also offer rehabilitation services.
In its report, the Department highlighted that the University of Guyana initiated a demand reduction curriculum through funding from the Organization of American States and Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission.
As part of Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI), the United States stated that it supports the “Skills and Knowledge for Youth Employment” (SKYE) project that provides vulnerable youth with training, mentorship, job placement and other support to increase their chances of success and to reduce youth involvement in crime and violence.
The programme also supports increased use of alternative sentences, so that youth who commit minor crimes are given an opportunity to rehabilitate outside penal facilities.
Furthermore, it was pointed out that Guyana has a drug enforcement presence at its international airports, post offices, and, to a lesser extent, at port and land-border entry points.
The Department noted that the five major agencies involved in anti-drug efforts are the Guyana Police Force (GPF), Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU), the Serious Organized Crimes Unit (SOCU), and the Guyana Defence Force (GDF).
The Department noted, however, that the GDF supports law enforcement agencies with boats, aircraft, and personnel but has limited capacity and lacks law enforcement authority.
The Guyana Coast Guard (GCG), a GDF sub-component and U.S. partner in maritime interdiction, patrols Guyana’s territorial waters and conducts humanitarian search and rescue missions.
The document says that in 2012, with U.S. funding through the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime’s (UNODC) Container Control Program (CCP) established a multi-agency CCP Port Control Unit at the John Fernandes Wharf, Guyana’s most active port.
In April 2016, the CCP Unit detected and seized 48 kilograms (kg) of cocaine and in June, 579 kg of marijuana. Through the first six months of 2016, the GPF reported seizing 16 kg of cocaine, a significant decrease from the 134.2 kg of cocaine that was seized over the same period in 2015.
CANU reported seizing 60 kg of cocaine over this period (down from 568.3 kg in 2015), and the GRA did not report any seizures.
Guyanese authorities convicted 46 persons on drug-related charges during 2016.

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