VIENNA, Austria – January 2021: New psychoactive substances with opioid effects are one of the fastest growing groups of NPS, which present a serious challenge to national authorities and the international community. The number of synthetic opioids reported to the UNODC Early Warning Advisory has steadily grown over the past decade, reaching a new peak in 2019 with 58 substances reported (see Figure 1). In total, over 80 different synthetic opioids have been reported to UNODC since 2009, with fentanyl analogues being the dominant and fastest growing subgroup.
Moreover, the number of synthetic opioids as a proportion of all NPS reported between 2009 and 2020 has reached already 9 per cent and in 2019 alone, synthetic opioids accounted for 17 per cent of all newly identified NPS.
Figure 1: New psychoactive substances with opioid effects reported annually to UNODC, 2009-2019
Source: UNODC Early warning advisory on new psychoactive substances, 2020.
EMCDDA reporting countries identified 66 synthetic opioids since 2009, with an increasing trend towards non-fentanyl derivates and highly potent substances (EMCDDA 2020). Likewise, UNODC flagged the emerging trend of non-fentanyl related synthetic opioids appearing on the illicit drug market, making the opioid crisis even more complex.
In addition, the COVID-19 outbreak led to a rise of opioid related deaths in several countries. For instance, in December 2020 the Government of Canada reported on 1,628 apparent opioid toxicity deaths that occurred between April and June 2020, a 54 per cent increase compared to the same time period in 2019, and the highest quarterly count since national surveillance began in 2016. Almost all (97 per cent) of these apparent opioid toxicity deaths in 2020 were unintentional (Government of Canada 2020).
For more information, please see:
UNODC Global SMART Update Vol. 24: The growing complexity of the opioid crisis
EMCDDA (2020): New psychoactive substances: global markets, glocal threats and the COVID-19 pandemic
Government of Canada (2020): Opioid- and Stimulant-related Harms in Canada
United Nations Toolkit on Synthetic Drugs
UNODC Opioid Strategy Website - Response to the Opioid Crisis