Brasilia, 19 December 2022 - UNODC in Brazil, UNDP Brazil, and the National Secretariat for Drug Use Prevention and Care (SENAPRED) of the Brazilian Ministry of Citizenship organized an event to launch the National Prevention System platform - SINAP and the UNODC campaign 'Listen First' in Portuguese. The virtual event took place on 19 December.
The National Secretary of SENAPRED, Quirino Cordeiro Junior, opened the event by stating that, in cooperation with UNODC and UNDP, SENAPRED identified the need to create a system that would act in the most different fronts to achieve more impactful results on drug use prevention, which ended up leading to the launch of the SINAP platform.
The National Secretary also announced the publication of the administrative decree no. 841, which creates at the federal governmental level in Brazil the National System for Prevention of Alcohol and Other Drugs Use - SINAP, under the Ministry of Citizenship.
The SINAP platform is aimed as a tool to assist the management of prevention actions in the country, as well as to facilitate the dialogue between the federal administration, states, municipalities, civil society, and academia, promoting systemic efforts on drug use prevention. It also gathers information, materials, resources, and access to e-learning training, among other resources.
The UNODC director in Brazil, Elena Abbati, invited the public to access and explore the SINAP platform and reinforced the importance of acting for prevention systemically. "When the prevention of drug use is implemented in a systemic format, based on integrated and intersectoral actions, uniting the implementation of programs and legislation, the chance of producing a population effect in reducing drug use is greater," she said.
"It is necessary to improve and update the mechanisms that help the governmental entities in their different levels of action," added the UNDP Brazil deputy resident representative, Carlos Arboleda. He also emphasized the importance of focusing on the most vulnerable people in preventive actions without leaving anyone behind.
Listen First
One of the resources already available on the SINAP platform is the UNODC campaign 'Listen First' in Portuguese. Released at the event in addition to the SINAP platform, the campaign was translated and adapted for the Brazilian context and had its primary objective to raise awareness about active listening children.
"Listen First is a campaign that shows how evidence-based prevention can be effective and the importance of listening to children so they can grow up happier and healthier. It targets parents, teachers, policymakers, and health and prevention professionals," explained Giovanna Campello, Chief, UNODC Prevention, Treatment, & Rehabilitation Section (PTRS)
To access the SINAP platform, click here.
