{"id":20167,"date":"2025-10-26T18:18:24","date_gmt":"2025-10-26T17:18:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/?p=20167"},"modified":"2026-01-11T18:07:26","modified_gmt":"2026-01-11T17:07:26","slug":"prioritizing-health-human-rights-and-sustainable-development-in-drug-policies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/2025\/10\/prioritizing-health-human-rights-and-sustainable-development-in-drug-policies\/","title":{"rendered":"Prioritizing health, human rights, and sustainable development in drug policies"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Statement by Marcos Neto, UN Assistant Secretary-General, and Director of UNDP\u2019s Bureau for Policy and Programme Support, at the launch of the third UNDP Discussion Paper on drug policy and development, ‘Development Dimensions of Drug Policy: New Challenges, Opportunities, and Emerging Issues’.\u00a0<\/span>September 17, 2025<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n
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Good afternoon, distinguished colleagues and friends.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Welcome to the side event\u00a0Development Dimensions of Drug Policy: Exploring New Challenges, Opportunities, and Emerging Issues.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

This is an important conversation. Drug policy remains one of the least represented issues in the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. The SDGs mention drugs only in the context of substance abuse – a narrow framing.<\/p>\n

In reality, the global illicit drug economy, estimated at more than 600 billion dollars, has profound implications for health, human rights, livelihoods, security, the environment, and development. For decades, punitive responses associated with the so-called \u201cwar on drugs\u201d have dominated, often with devastating consequences for individuals, families, communities, and entire economies.<\/p>\n

Today, we benefit from a growing body of evidence that demonstrates the far-reaching impacts of drug policies. We know that both production and control measures carry serious environmental costs. We know that the proliferation of new substances poses complex public health challenges. And we know that punitive approaches have led to severe human rights violations.<\/p>\n

Since the adoption of the 2030 Agenda, UNDP has worked to broaden the understanding of drug policy, extending beyond the security frame, to a development frame with significant human and health impacts. UNDP works on rights and access to services for key HIV populations, including people who use drugs, in 97 countries. Through its partnership with the Global Fund, UNDP has supported HIV programmes in 57 countries, reaching 86,245 people who use drugs with essential services. We work to deliver the UN System Common Position on Drugs, that calls on us to work through partnerships grounded in human rights, health, and science.<\/p>\n

And I am pleased that today we launch the third paper in UNDP\u2019s series on the development dimensions of drug policy.<\/p>\n

This new paper addresses today\u2019s increasingly complex landscape:<\/p>\n