As Nigeria joined the globe to commemorate the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking 2025, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has reaffirmed his commitment to eradicating drug abuse.
President Tinubu stated this in his keynote address at the ASAP Stakeholders’ Conference in commemoration of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking 2025, held at the State House in Abuja on Thursday.
The President, represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, aligned the commitment to his administration’s broader Renewed Hope Agenda, which aims to address socio-economic vulnerabilities.
“This has been the focus of our administration – breaking the burden of poverty, uplifting millions out of squalor, and caring for the youth through the student loan scheme and other empowerment initiatives”, he stated.
With this year’s theme, ‘The Evidence is Clear: Invest in Prevention’, he called for a collective effort in the fight against drug abuse and illicit trafficking in the country.
While urging that the campaign against drug abuse should evolve into a national movement, President Tinubu emphasized that a holistic and inclusive approach can successfully tackle the scourge.
“To effectively tackle this problem, our approach must be comprehensive. We must foster peace, we must promote inclusive development. And we must uphold human rights every step of the way”, he stressed.
In his remarks, the Chairman of MTN Foundation, Dr. Mosun Bello-Olasoga emphasized on the need for solutions that will address the prevalence of psychoactive substances that are being sold, distributed and used.
While noting youth development is one of the core pillars of the Foundation, Dr. Bello-Olasoga disclosed that through the Anti Substance Abuse Programme (ASAP), the network provider has actively propagated and raised awareness through social media, targeted campaigns and interventions in collaboration with the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), and the United Nation Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
“Since our launch in 2019, we have reached millions of Nigerians and aimed to do even more – not alone, but along greater minds like yours.
“This is all our fight, and we need to play a part in sensitising communities and developing new policies to counter this scourge”, he said.
According to him, MTN has educated communities in collaboration with National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and hosted quiz competitions to increase awareness, among 86,400 students and 1,440 teachers from 144 public secondary schools in 12 States.
“This is in addition to the advocacy walks in tertiary institutions across Abuja, Enugu, Kano and Lagos States and our partnership with NDLEA on their 24/7 toll free psycho – social support helpline for affected youth”, he concluded.