KUCHING: The Malaysian National Anti-Drug Agency (AADK) is seeking to reduce the number of addicts to 400 people per 100,000 population by the year 2025.
AADK director-general Sutekno Ahmad Belon said, “An action plan to address drug and substance abuse in Sarawak has been formulated so that the rate of addiction and the rate of relapse can be reduced.
“We seek to reduce the number of relapse drug users to less than 25 percent and increase the number of those who are fully recovered to 75 percent,” he added.
Sutekno said that as of the middle of this year, there were 297 drug addicts out of a population of 100,000 people.
He added that the One Stop Committee (OSC) for MIDS set up by the Ministry of Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development was a wise move to control and reduce the problem of drug and substance abuse.
Sutekno also said that the agency fully supportrf the establishment of the OSC MIDS, adding they would cooperate as much as possible to reduce the number of drug addicts and problem of drug and substance abuse.
He said this during a courtesy call to Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development Minister Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah at the ministry’s meeting room at Baitul Makmur 2 complex on Wednesday (Oct 27).
“A review is being done to strengthen and streamline AADK services in Sarawak and increase the rehabilitation centers under the 12th Malaysia Plan.
“We are also in discussions with the state government to identify a suitable site to build a new centre and that is the goal we are working on now,” he later told a press conference.
