Increased awareness at the international level |
| [ Drug and alcohol abuse prevention ] |
The international consensus which has since developed on how to address substance abuse, based on the principles set out in the ILO's Code of practice, is reflected in the United Nations Declaration on the Guiding Principles of Drug Demand Reduction, which was adopted in June 1998 by the United Nations General Assembly at its Special Session on the World Drug Problem.
The United Nations Declaration on the Guiding Principles of Drug Demand Reduction states in paragraph 11 that:
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A community-wide participatory and partnership approach is crucial to the accurate assessment of the problem, the identification of viable solutions and the formulation and implementation of appropriate policies and programmes. Collaboration among Governments, non-governmental organizations, parents, teachers, health professionals, youth and community organizations, employers' and workers' organizations and the private sector is, therefore, essential. Such collaboration improves public awareness and enhances the capacity of communities to deal with the negative consequences of drug abuse. Public responsibility and awareness and community mobilization are of paramount importance to ensuring the sustainability of demand reduction strategies. |
An Action Plan for the implementation of the Declaration was also adopted by the General Assembly. Under the heading Forging partnerships, Objective 7 of the Action Plan reads:
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To identify how different national and local institutions and organizations may contribute to efforts to reduce the illicit drug demand; and to promote the linking of those institutions and organizations. |
The national action envisaged for the implementation of the Action Plan includes identifying "drug demand reduction programmes run by various agencies, governmental and non-governmental". Although workplace initiatives are not specifically mentioned, it is clear that they play a vital role, particularly in view of the provisions of the Political Declaration, also adopted by the General Assembly in 1998, which calls on "communities, especially families, and their political, religious, educational, cutural, sports, business and union leadership, NGOs and the media worldwide to actively promote a society free of drug abuse."
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