Bratislava – A growing chorus of international voices is calling for a fundamental reassessment of global drug policies, citing their demonstrable failures and the increasingly punitive measures employed under the guise of combating narcotics. A new report released this month by the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC) paints a stark picture of a system struggling to adapt to a complex and evolving drug landscape, while simultaneously contributing to human rights abuses and hindering public health initiatives.
The IDPC report, assessing progress since the 2016 UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on drugs, concludes that the potential for meaningful change identified at that session remains largely unrealized. Despite some localized advancements, punitive and prohibitionist approaches continue to dominate international drug control strategies, incurring significant human and financial costs. Ann Fordham, IDPC Executive Director, stated that these approaches “are costing lives, undermining human rights and wasting public resources, while silencing the very communities that hold the solutions.”
For decades, advocates have presented evidence demonstrating the ineffectiveness of hardline drug policies. The IDPC report details how current prohibitive measures have not curbed drug markets, but rather facilitated their expansion and diversification. Simultaneously, the number of people who use drugs globally continues to rise, now estimated at 316 million – a 28 percent increase since 2016. This growth occurs despite the vast resources allocated to enforcement and interdiction.
Beyond the failure to control drug markets, the report highlights a disturbing trend: the use of repressive policies to justify broader crackdowns on civil society and human rights defenders. This echoes concerns raised by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in 2024, who labelled the “War on Drugs” a “clear failure.” The IDPC report documents a resurgence of “war on drugs” rhetoric, reminiscent of the approaches prevalent in the 1970s and 1980s, now being used to legitimize militarization, repression, and violations of international law.
The consequences of these policies are far-reaching. Between 2016 and 2021, an estimated 2.6 million people died from drug use-related causes, with projections indicating a further increase. Mass incarceration remains a critical issue, with one in five incarcerated individuals globally imprisoned for drug offenses, disproportionately affecting marginalized communities. Access to essential medicines, particularly opioid pain relief, is inadequate in over 150 countries due to overly restrictive controls. The report notes an alarming trend of expanding use of the death penalty for drug offenses and the displacement of illegal drug activities into environmentally fragile regions like Central America and the Amazon basin as a result of eradication efforts.
The IDPC identifies “vast vested interests in the status quo” as a key obstacle to reform, citing the “prison industrial complex” as a prime example. Globally, one in five prisoners are incarcerated for drug-related offenses, a strategy Fordham argues has proven ineffective in reducing the scale of illegal drug markets.
The shift in rhetoric and narratives under the previous US administration is also highlighted as a concerning development. Anton Basenko, Executive Director of the International Network of People Who Use Drugs (INPUD), noted a “radical change” in approach, with governments increasingly using drug policy as a pretext for breaches of international law to pursue other political aims. The recent claim by the US administration linking the abduction of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro to efforts to halt drug trafficking serves as a stark example.
Steve Rolles, Senior Policy Analyst at the UK-based Transform Drug Policy Foundation, expressed concern that the US’s disregard for international law could embolden other actors to engage in similar abuses, potentially worsening human rights problems globally. He warned of the “shamelessness” with which the US is trampling on international law, using the war on drugs as cover for actions that violate international human rights standards.
Despite these challenges, the IDPC report acknowledges positive developments. Hundreds of millions of people now live in jurisdictions where recreational cannabis is legal, with markets established across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas. The report also suggests a renewed interest in psychedelics could drive further regulatory innovation. Rolles points to the significant progress made over the past decade, including cannabis reforms, the spread of harm reduction strategies, and decriminalization efforts.
However, these reforms have largely been driven by civil society organizations, which are now facing funding cuts and restrictions on their ability to advocate for change. The reduction in foreign aid funding, particularly from the US, has had a devastating impact on civil society groups working on issues such as HIV prevention and harm reduction. Funding for harm reduction, already historically low, is now in a critical state, with available funding in 2022 amounting to only 6% of the estimated $2.7 billion annual need.
The IDPC argues that these funding constraints underscore the urgency of adopting its recommendations, which include modernizing international drug control treaties and reorienting the global drug control system towards a rights-based, health-focused, and development-oriented approach. The upcoming UN system-wide reforms and the review of the international drug control regime by an independent expert panel present a rare opportunity to “correct course.”
The report emphasizes the need for a reconfiguration of the global drug control system, prioritizing rights, health, and development. This call comes at a crucial juncture, as the United Nations prepares for system-wide reforms and an independent expert panel begins reviewing the international drug control regime, offering a potential pathway to address the shortcomings of the current system.
