Vienna (Austria), 20 December 2021 — The manufacture of synthetic drugs is on the rise, as are the harms associated with their use. The UN Toolkit on Synthetic Drugs, an innovative online platform covering a wide range of cross-cutting thematic areas related to synthetic drugs, helps countries respond to this challenge. It has been accessed by 14,000 users in 185 countries and territories to date and its reach is now being expanded through the availability of a French language version.
Developed under the UNODC Opioid Strategy and supporting the implementation of the Synthetic Drug Strategy, the UN Toolkit on Synthetic Drugs brings together over 300 multidisciplinary resources from across the UN system covering topics such as forensics, treatment and care, precursors, legal responses, access to medicine and prevention of diversion, early warning systems, postal security and cybercrime.
The newly launched French language version of the UN Toolkit on Synthetic Drugs was made possible through financial support from the Government of Canada’s Anti-Crime Capacity Building Program (ACCBP) and will provide French-speaking experts, practitioners, and policymakers in the fields of health, law enforcement, forensics, and research with the tools they need to tackle the threats posed by synthetic drugs.
“The Toolkit is an essential resource for anyone that has a role to play in responding to the global synthetic drug problem and in particular the opioid crisis,” said Ambassador Troy Lulashnyk, Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations in Vienna. “Recognizing the valuable and sustainable impact access to the Toolkit can have, the Government of Canada has supported the re-development of the Toolkit in French to make it available for all Francophone communities around the world. Ce sera un outil essentiel à la lutte contre ce fléau!”
