The extent of illicit drug use has remained stable in five years, but the estimated 15.5 million to 38.6 million problem drug users, including those with drug dependence and drug-use disorders, remain of a particular concern.
Globally, it is estimated that in 2010 between 153 million and 300 million people aged 15-64 years (3.4-6.6 per cent of the world’s population in that age group) had used an illicit substance at least once in the previous year.
This is according to the 2012 World Drug Report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, made available to the Ghana News Agency on Thursday.
This year’s World Drug Report provides an overview of recent trends and the drug situation in terms of production, trafficking, consumption and the consequences of illicit drug use in terms of treatment, drug related diseases and drug-related deaths.
It presents a long-term perspective on the characteristics and evolution of the drug problem and the main factors that shaped it.
It, however, indicates that some 10 to 13 per cent of drug users continue to be problem users with drug dependence and/or drug-use disorders, the prevalence of HIV (estimated at approximately 20 per cent), hepatitis C (46.7 per cent) and hepatitis B (14.6 per cent) among injecting drug users continues to add to the global burden of disease and last but not least, approximately one in every 100 deaths among adults is attributed to illicit drug use.