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President Jacob Zuma has appealed to all young people and children to refrain from using drugs and abusing alcohol, and also appeals to those who are addicted to seek treatment, as the country joins the world in marking the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on 26 June 2016, under the theme "Listen First".

Indications are that between 7,5% and 31 percent of South Africans have an alcohol problem or are at risk. On drugs, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime report of 2014 indicated that more than 270 000 South African citizens were defined as problem drug users.

“The abuse of drugs is threatening to destroy many families. Some parents live in fear of their children who terrorise them and neighbours, due to the abuse of nyaope, whoonga, cocaine, heroin and other drugs. We appeal to our youth to say NO to drugs. Those who are already addicted should seek treatment. Government is building treatment centres in every province, to make treatment accessible,’’ said President Zuma.

The President has also thanked all young people who have sought treatment. The report from the South African Community Epidemiology Network on Drug Use indicates that the following numbers of young people received treatment between January and June 2015, from the ages of 10 to 39 - Three thousand six hundred and seventy seven in Gauteng from the age of 10 to 39, two thousand eight hundred and sixty nine in the Western Cape, ninety three in Limpopo and Mpumalanga, two hundred and ninety in the Eastern Cape.

“We urge parents and communities to encourage more drug users to seek help. We also welcome and support the campaign by the Congress of South African Students (COSAS) against alcohol abuse and the wearing of school uniforms in taverns, said the President.

He added that local authorities should not grant liquor licences to outlets that sell liquor to school children, or who operate near schools who want to target schoolchildren as customers.

“We also urge communities to report drug lords and drug peddlers so that they can be stopped from destroying our children’, said the President.

In his message to all member states of the United Nations, the UN Secretary General Mr Ban Ki Moon said "on this International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, I call on countries and communities to continue to improve the lives of everyone blighted by drug abuse by integrating security and public safety with a heightened focus on health, human rights, and sustainable development."

Issued by the Presidency