Drug Trafficking and Addiction: Still on the rise

UNICEF recently made a survey of the state of drug addiction and drug trafficking in the Maldives, revealing that as much as half of the youth population was addicted to drugs in the islands. The survey has shown a great increase in the number of drugs over the past few years. Over 50 percent of the youth abuse drugs in some islands, said the UNICEF report. The most common substance abused is heroin. The average age when the habit forms is 12, the report said, although there were cases as young as 9 years old. A joint investigation into the extent of drug abuse in the Maldives is being conducted by the National Narcotics Control Board (NNCB) and UNICEF. The investigation will touch upon key issues such as the specifics of trafficking, and the number of new addicts. The survey will be conducted throughout all the regions of the Maldives and on all the islands where the abuse of drugs is present.

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