The International Conference on Drug Abuse Prevention and Treatment in Asia 2015, co-organised by the University of Macau (UM) Department of Sociology and the Asian Association for Substance Abuse Research (AASAR), was held at UM recently.

The two-day conference included keynote speeches on such topics as the causes and patterns of drug abuse, the mechanism and pharmacology of substance abuse, drug addiction and HIV/AIDS, and drug abuse prevention and control.

The event attracted government officials, policymakers, scholars, and practitioners in substance abuse treatment and criminal justice from Asian countries; as well as experts and scholars from the United States, Australia, South Africa, and other parts of the world. Participants exchanged ideas on strategies to promote drug abuse prevention and treatment. Some scholars proposed establishing an evidence-based system for drug abuse prevention.

According to a report titled ‘Global Synthetic Drugs Assessment’, released by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in 2014, the use and trafficking of illicit drugs has become increasingly rampant in Asia and is spreading among young adults. According to a latest research report issued by the Social Welfare Bureau of Macao SAR, the rate of substance abuse in 2014 in Macao reached 2.48 per cent among school children and close to 20 per cent among street youth. Some scholars point out that there is an urgent need for Asian countries to develop a scientific understanding of drug trafficking and substance abuse and to establish a better system for drug prevention and treatment.

The AASAR is a nonprofit academic organisation. Led by Spencer De Li, a well-known criminologist and head of UM’s Department of Sociology, it was founded by institutions and individuals in Asian countries and regions dedicated to drug abuse prevention and treatment.


Source: Faculty of Social Sciences
 

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