June 26 is marked as the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking every year with an aim to spread awareness about the global drug problem and eliminate drug misuse.
'Share Drug Facts to Save Lives' is the theme of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking this year. The focus is to curb the spread of misinformation on the topic and to encourage the exchange of facts related to drugs.
According to the 2021 report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), around 275 million people used drugs worldwide last year during Covid-19 pandemic, up by 22% from 2010.
During the coronavirus pandemic, there has been a rise in the use of cannabis in most countries. Increased non-medical use of pharmaceutical sedatives has been observed in this period.
The UN report adds, when it comes to disease-linked to drug abuse, Opioids continue to be the biggest contributor. Socio-economic stressors have accelerated the demand for use of drugs. The report said, 13% of the total number of people who use drugs, i.e. 36.3 million people, suffer from disorders linked to drug abuse.
As per latest estimates, around 5.5% of the world population aged between 5 to 64 have used drugs at least once in the last year.