Washington — The Obama administration says it recognizes the importance of reducing the American demand for illegal drugs alongside its ongoing efforts to provide assistance to Central American nations in stemming criminal activity and the flow of drugs from their territories.
The White House’s National Drug Control Policy director, Gil Kerlikowske, met with the ambassadors of Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama in Washington January 25 to discuss U.S. efforts to reduce drug use and its consequences, as well as prevent illegal drug entry into the United States
According to a statement from Kerlikowske’s office, the director said Central American countries “are making substantial efforts” in the face of “a significant assault from transnational criminal organizations that use the region as a transit route for illegal drugs.”
As part of President Obama’s drug control strategy the United States is “not only providing assistance to partner nations but also recognizing our shared responsibility to reduce the demand for illicit drugs here at home,” he said.
A Coast Guard helicopter chases a vessel in an anti-drug-smuggling training operation. The U.S. is fighting the drug trade through enforcement as well as prevention methods.
The demand for drugs by Americans has been fueling many of the transnational criminal organizations that are responsible for violence throughout the Western Hemisphere. Over the past three years, the Obama administration has committed more than $31 billion to fund drug-prevention programs inside the United States and to expand access to drug treatment for Americans with substance use disorders.
The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) reported that drug use in the United States has dropped to roughly one-third of where it was in the late 1970s. Over the past five years, American cocaine use has dropped 46 percent among young adults between the ages of 18 and 25, and the percentage of people testing positive for cocaine in the workplace has dropped 65 percent, according to ONDCP sources.
The ONDCP also reported that the U.S. government aims to decrease the total number of chronic drug users by an additional 15 percent by 2015.
According to ONDCP, scientific evidence has shown that prevention efforts such as community-based treatment programs are the most cost-effective and common-sense approach to reducing the demand for illegal drugs, as opposed to sending nonviolent offenders to prison.
The Obama administration is funding scientific research on drug use, while also supporting initiatives that make addiction treatment an integrated part of health care and provide community services that support sustained recovery.
In addition, the United States continues to work with Central American countries to help stem the illegal drug trade by providing them with assistance to help strengthen security, foster economic growth and promote democracy and the rule of law.
The Central America Regional Security Initiative (CARSI) has allocated $361 million to the seven nations of the region since 2008 to help reverse the region’s deteriorating citizen-security environment. CARSI is helping local authorities confront narcotics rings, transnational gangs and organized crime, as well as disrupt criminal infrastructure, such as money laundering and trafficking networks. It also funds training and enhancements for public security, law enforcement and judicial personnel and promotes community policing efforts and programming for at-risk youth.
According to ONDCP, the United States and other international donors are also supporting the Central American Integration System’s Central American Regional Security Strategy. The strategy was adopted by Central American nations in June 2011. U.S. assistance is focusing on priorities they have set, ranging from law enforcement and government help to the private sector and the need to improve education and opportunities for the region’s youth.
