New campaign against substance abuse by young people launched

In the wake of disasters such as the Enyobeni Tavern tragedy, where 21 young people died after drinking alcohol at a “pens down” party in June 2022, BUMB’INGOMSO has stepped in to address the issue of substance abuse among the youth.

The nonprofit organisation has implemented a range of initiatives such as school talks and other events aimed at raising awareness and reducing substance abuse.

The initiative is taking place across Buffalo City Metro and Amathole district.

Esethu Sotheni, the organisation’s project co-ordinator, said alcohol consumption by young people, particularly those under age, was a pressing concern.

“As an HIV prevention project whose primary aim is to decrease the number of new infections among young people, particularly adolescent girls and young women, we have witnessed how alcohol puts them at risk of contracting HIV.

“They often become victims of sexual assault, gender-based violence and increased domestic violence.

“We looked at our current project offerings and found none of our interventions really delved deeply into addressing alcohol use.

“We then trained our youth mentors in substance and drug abuse reduction programmes.”

Sotheni said the trained individuals would be responsible for sharing information at community levels through clubs, schools, facilitated discussions, during dialogues and on social media.

“The Enyobeni tragedy will remain one of the most devastating tragedies relating to alcohol use and distribution.

“It shone a light on many issues which have been ignored for too long, like the distribution of alcohol to underage children, the dangers of these ‘pens down parties’, the overhyped culture in communities of drinking, illegal trading outlets and the lack of recreational facilities for young people.

“We are now conducting baseline digital surveys and focus group discussions with young people, trying to understand their reasons for alcohol use and what alcohol-free fun events or activities they would want to participate in.

“This will allow us to give young people back the power to make decisions about what they want to be a part of, and help us in our research on the use of alcohol in the Eastern Cape.”

Sotheni said the experience of the recent Easter holidays was proof there was still a long way to go in terms of curbing substance abuse.

Teenagers were seen drinking publicly, with two losing their lives in separate incidents during the holidays.

“A painful reality is that young people will always find ways of engaging in risky behaviours which can lead to lives lost, but if we can strengthen stakeholder relations, a lot can be achieved.”

The training started in 2023 and a new cohort has already undergone training this year.

“BUMB’INGOMSO interventions have already been rolled out, with the Behaviour Change and Communication Intervention taking the lead with school substance abuse workshops across BCM and Amathole district.

“We are targeting the whole of Buffalo City and Amathole with particular interest in areas like Mdantsane, Qonce, Butterworth, the East London beachfront and Nompumelelo.

“These have been identified as the hotspots for these parties and they require an urgent intervention.”

This will allow us to give young people back the power to make decisions about what they want to be a part of, and help us in our research on the use of alcohol in the Eastern Cape