Leading a global response to the Opioid Crisis – UNODC Opioid Strategy

This project aims to reduce the threat of synthetic opioids to men and women in selected beneficiary countries and Canada. Project activities include: (1) developing the following new toolkit modules: (a) advanced investigative techniques in interdicting drug trafficking; (b) airport and air-passenger security and interdiction; (c) opioid overdose prevention & stigma reduction; and (d) safe handling and disposal that promote gender-sensitive and human rights-based approaches; (2) delivering six regional training workshops raising awareness of the opioid crisis and highlighting the gender and human rights dimensions of the crisis; (3) providing training to two focal points from each of the six countries (Bolivia Dominican Republic El Salvador Jamaica Panama and Trinidad and Tobago) on the identification and detection of synthetic drugs including synthetic opioids; and (4) supplying six air-cargo control units where they are not available and training on using the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) field drug and precursor kits including the handheld electronic drug identification devices. The project expects to benefit women and men law enforcement officers from the following countries: Bolivia Costa Rica Dominican Republic Ecuador El Salvador Honduras Jamaica Laos PDR Mexico Pakistan Panama Peru Sri Lanka Thailand Trinidad and Tobago and Vietnam.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) strengthened practices and access to tools for law enforcement border control and drug control officers in beneficiary countries including Francophone countries to better predict prevent and protect against synthetic drugs including synthetic opioids in a gender-sensitive human rights-based manner; and (2) strengthened the effectiveness of law enforcement border control and drug control officers to safely identify prevent and disrupt the trafficking of synthetic drugs and their precursors in all beneficiary countries using gender-sensitive and human rights-based approaches.