We can defeat drug abuse

Somewhere in this edition, we carry a story of a young man who was a victim of and eventually a victor against drug abuse in Botswana. From the article, the young man is a graduate and had fallen victim to a pandemic that is swallowing many others in the country. Lucky for him, he got saved well on time by the Botswana Institute for Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Offenders (BIRRO).

The story lays bare the severity of the drug abuse situation in the country. Although we don’t want to admit yet, drug or substance abuse is real in Botswana, and it is actually a pandemic.

Hence, this is a call for action from all stakeholders to act in order to end the pandemic. We are losing many people, both young active Batswana and the old to the scourge.

There have been many studies that have raised alarm on the rise in drug and substance abuse in the country.

We know that drug and substance abuse is prevalent amongst the young and active population.

However, what remains a problem is how we as a nation intend to tackle this headache.

Little is known about factors that lead to alcohol and drug use amongst this group. As a nation, we need to find a solution and we need it fast.

One can imagine how many people we have lost to this scourge. These are people who might have made significant contribution to this country’s development.

One of those things we need to focus on is effective public health interventions. Just like we did with HIV/AIDS, Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) and lately, COVID-19 pandemic, we can also win the war if there is political will to end the scourge.

Drug and substance abuse is a bigger problem than one might just think. It has spin offs such as crime and mental health problems. Botswana’s small population doesn’t allow for its people to be consumed by such societal problems.

Unless we act now, we might find ourselves with an even bigger problem than HIV/AIDS, which we are told is actually on the decline in the country.

This needs those in power to consider it amongst their priorities. It is a national crisis, which needs to be attended to. Let us all stand to end drug and substance abuse.