UNODC supports State Coordination Committee on Drugs Control in Kyrgyzstan

The event was attended by some 50 representatives from the governmental authorities.

During the meeting, Mr. Zhenish Razakov stressed that “close proximity of Kyrgyzstan to Afghanistan, where last year an absolute record of opium was produced, poses a threat of increasing trafficking of heroin that can provoke not only worsening situation with criminal situation in general."

The Vice Prime Minister also highlighted new challenges and threats that have become reality in the country in the past few years: “Firstly, this is the problem with the so-called «new psychoactive substances”, which are not formally drugs, but able to re-produce their psychoactive effect. We have to make decision on their inclusion to the lists of controlled substances in a short time, however, new types of them appear on the market very soon, therefore, this work needs to be organized in a more efficient manner,” he added.

The new alternative North-South road that is under construction in the Naryn and Issyk-Kul oblasts, with low population density and minimum law-enforcement infrastructure, has high probability for using by criminals as a new “bypass route” of the so-called Northern Route of Afghan drug trafficking.

The SCCD members also discussed issues regarding implementation of the Anti-drug program of the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic and its Action Plan adopted by the Government of Kyrgyzstan in 2014, as well as other important issues of coordination activities in the field of drug control, including drug demand reduction and reduction of negative consequences of drugs.

Important to note that in March 2018, UNODC in Kyrgyzstan with the generous financial support from the Government of Japan, has launched a US $ 2.7 million project on Supporting Drug Control.

These efforts aimed at supporting strong national legislation on drug control, national operational capacities on drug law enforcement, as well as for enhancing the capacities of other competent authorities in maintaining the legal turnover of controlled narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursors under the ratified UN conventions. As part of a balanced and comprehensive integrated strategy, the health consequences of drug use especially for the young and vulnerable population will also be addressed.

The meeting was organized as part of the sub-programme-1 “Countering transnational organized crime, illicit drug trafficking and preventing terrorism” of the “UNODC Programme for Central Asia 2015-2019”.