International Narcotics Control Board - INCB
19 February 2009

Report of the International Narcotics Control Board for 2008
http://www.incb.org/incb/annual-report-2008.html

Foreword

In a few months, the international community will commemorate 100 years
of international drug control.

A hundred years ago, substances that are internationally controlled
today were unregulated and widely abused. The consumption of opiates in
China alone was estimated to be more than 3,000 tons in morphine
equivalent, far in excess of global consumption, both licit and illicit,
today. In the United States, about 90 per cent of narcotic drugs were
used for non-medical purposes. As drug abuse spread,  in increasing
number of people became familiar with the wretchedness, misery and evil
connected with that affliction.

The International Opium Commission, convened in Shanghai in 1909,
brought an end to decades of indifference towards drug problems and is
rightly regarded as having laid the foundation for the current
international drug control system. From it, an international treaty
system was created and expanded over the decades that followed. Today,
the three main international drug control treaties form the foundation
of that system: the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961, the
Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971 and the United Nations
Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic
Substances of 1988. With over 95 per cent of Member States being parties
to the international drug control conventions, multilateral drug control
should be considered one of the greatest achievements of the twentieth
century.

For its part, the International Narcotics Control Board has managed, for
the past 40 years, a global control system that has continuously
expanded. The number of internationally controlled substances has
increased from a few dozen to more than 200 today. In addition, national
legitimate requirements for narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances
have soared.

Despite the ever-increasing scope of the international drug control
system, diversions of narcotic drugs from the licit to the illicit
market are virtually nonexistent. While diversions of psychotropic
substances occur, the implementation of the 1971 Convention has resulted
in a substantial reduction in the prescription of barbiturates and other
hypnotics. The success of international cooperation in controlling the
licit manufacture of and trade in narcotic drugs and most psychotropic
substances has forced traffickers to resort to illicit drug  manufacture.

However, to pretend that challenges do not exist would be to deny
reality. One such challenge is ensuring the availability of narcotic
drugs used for medical purposes. For years, the Board has called on
Governments to fulfil that treaty obligation and make the availability
of drugs a priority public health issue. Nevertheless, large
discrepancies in the consumption of those medicines remain. As a result
of the underutilization of these drugs in many countries, the World Health
Organization (WHO) estimates that perhaps as many as 86 million persons
suffer from untreated moderate-to-severe pain each year. The problems
behind this phenomenon are complex and defy simplistic solutions.
Together with WHO, the Board has developed the Access to Controlled
Medications Programme, which addresses the causes of the problems and
assists Governments in their endeavours to prevent unnecessary
suffering. I encourage Governments to make use of the Programme to
improve the availability of drugs for medical purposes, where appropriate.

The treatment of addicts remains a difficult medical task. Such
treatment should be carried out in line with sound medical practice and
should not be used as an instrument to establish or maintain social
control. Much attention has been paid recently to drug substitution
programmes, which were initially developed as a last resort for those
drug abusers who, for a variety of reasons, had not succeeded in
overcoming their dependence through the use of other treatment
modalities. While these programmes have their place in drug control
policy, they should not necessarily be regarded as the ultimate goal but
as an interim stage that would eventually lead to the development of a
healthy, drug-free lifestyle. Moreover, drug substitution programmes
should be supported by psychosocial care. The Board agrees to the use of
substitution therapy in the treatment of drug dependence, always
providing that this is delivered with appropriate medical supervision
and can be reconciled with adequate measures to prevent abuse and
diversion. Governments must also seriously address the other questions
of demand reduction, particularly drug abuse prevention. We should
recall the clear message of the twentieth special
session of the General Assembly, held in 1998: drugs represent a danger
for our societies, and drug control, control of both demand and supply,
is the shared responsibility of all nations.

The international community may wish to review the issue of cannabis.
Over the years, cannabis has become more potent and is associated with
an increasing number of emergency room admissions. Cannabis is often the
first illicit drug that young people take. It is frequently called a
gateway drug. In spite of all these facts, the use of cannabis is often
trivialized and, in some countries, controls over the cultivation,
possession and use of cannabis are less strict than for other drugs.
Drug regulations are not a panacea. Regulations alone cannot eliminate
illicit drug trafficking and abuse. I can therefore understand that the
following question is often raised: Would it would be more economical to
do away with all drug regulations and leave it to market forces to
regulate the situation? I believe that this is the wrong question,
similar to questioning whether it is economical to try to prevent car
accidents or to treat infectious diseases. History has shown that
national and international control of drugs can be effective and it is
therefore the choice to be made.

Hamid Ghodse
President - International Narcotics Control Board

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Report of the International Narcotics Control Board for 2008
http://www.incb.org/incb/annual-report-2008.html

Contents

Chapter I
The international drug control conventions: history, achievements and
challenges
A. History
B. Achievements
C. Challenges
1. Health challenges
2. Legal challenges
3. The challenges of drug abuse prevention
4. The challenges of globalization
D. Recommendations.

Chapter II
Operation of the international drug control system
A. Narcotic drugs
B. Psychotropic substances
C. Precursors
D. Promoting universal application of the international drug control
treaties
E. Measures to ensure the implementation of the international drug
control treaties
F. Special topics

Chapter III
Analysis of the world situation
A.  Africa
B.  Americas
Central America and the Caribbean
North America
South America
C.  Asia
East and South-East Asia
South Asia
West Asia
D. Europe
E.  Oceania

Chapter IV
Recommendations to Governments, the United Nations and other relevant
international and regional organizations
A. Recommendations to Governments
B. Recommendations to the United Nations Office on Drugs Crime and
to the World Health Organization
C. Recommendations to other relevant international organizations

Annexes
I.   Regional groupings used in the report of the International
Narcotics Control Board for 2008
II.   Current membership of the International Narcotics Control
Board; Role of the International Narcotics Control Board
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