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Drug Abuse
Program against Drug Abuse Reaches out to Youth of Latin America
"Lions Quest" program will expand to run in Belize, Colombia, Paraguay
A program in the United States and Canada that seeks to prevent drug abuse among young people while developing their life skills will be expanded into Latin America, says the Organization of American States (OAS).
Preschoolers through 12th-graders will be targeted under the program, which will operate under a partnership between the OAS Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) and a global service organization called the Lions Clubs International Foundation, based in Oak Brook, Illinois. The OAS said in an April 4 statement that the program, dubbed Lions Quest, will initially operate in Belize, Colombia and Paraguay, and will later include other countries in Latin America.
Lions Quest aims to help young people develop self-confidence and decision-making ability. Youngsters are taught to resist negative peer pressure, manage their emotions, seek healthy friendships and family relationships, and find positive ways of spending free time. Young people are encouraged to make their own educated decisions about substance abuse and other risky behaviors. Community service through local Lions Clubs forms an important part of the effort.
More than 46,000 Lions Clubs operate in 193 countries around the world. Members are involved in activities ranging from cleaning up area parks to helping in natural-disaster relief efforts. The CICAD and the Lions Club will divide the initial cost of providing teaching materials as well as training teachers to conduct the program. The CICAD, created in 1986, offers training in drug-abuse prevention, increases communication among law enforcement agencies, and promotes alternative development in regions where local economies have depended on illegal crops.
Anti-drug regulations adopted under the CICAD have become the basis for
laws in many OAS member countries. The regulations are designed to
combat money laundering, illegal firearms trafficking, and illegal
transactions involving precursor chemicals: substances that are used in
the processing illegal drugs such as cocaine and heroin.
Activities under the CICAD build on a 1996 "Anti-Drug Strategy in the
Hemisphere" which is considered the world's most advanced regional
agreement on drugs. It grew out of the First Summit of the Americas,
held in 1994 in Miami.
Washington, DC
April 8, 2005