One.- While the HIM As the future of drug policy is debated in Vienna, experts warn that U.S. cuts to treatment and prevention programs could trigger a global health crisis, with an increase in overdoses and the spread of diseases such as tuberculosis and HIV.
"Without these programs, an increase in HIV, hepatitis C, and tuberculosis is imminent," Catherine Cook of the NGO Harm Reduction International (HRI) told EFE in Vienna.
The Government of Donald Trump canceled 83% of the foreign aid programs of the now-dismantled United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
Following Trump's inauguration in January, the United States suspended foreign aid for 90 days to review spending on all programs, halting funding for hundreds of NGOs around the world.
According to Cook, the cuts primarily affect countries in sub-Saharan Africa and some Asian nations such as India.
In some countries, such as Kenya and Zambia, dozens of clinics have already closed, and in Nigeria, syringe exchange programs have been suspended to prevent infection.
"Overdose deaths have been reported as a result of service closures," Cook adds, noting that there was already a funding gap in harm reduction programs, and the drastic cuts in the US are in addition to those in other European countries.
What is 'harm reduction'?
The 'harm reduction' It is a series of programs endorsed by the World Health Organization (OMS) and evidence-based strategies that seek to minimize the negative consequences of drug use, such as death from overdose or the spread of disease.
It includes strategies such as sterile syringe programs, access to opioid substitution treatments, education on safe use, and naloxone distribution to prevent overdoses.
This model has proven to be highly effective in preventing diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C, as well as in reducing mortality among drug users.
Cook emphasized that the cuts make harm reduction programs even more dependent on the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
According to a recent report by the NGO International Network of People Who Use Drugs (INPUD), the funding freeze has led to the closure of essential programs in Africa, Eastern Europe, and Southeast Asia, where U.S. funding has been crucial to maintaining harm reduction programs.
This study is based on responses from organizations and assistance networks, and 77% of respondents reported serious disruptions to their programs, which can lead to increased use of used syringes and exposure to infectious diseases.
The study concludes that "funding cuts have immediate and devastating consequences for drug users and harm reduction program providers."
The UN criticizes isolationism
In the Commission on Narcotic Drugs At the UN, the largest multilateral body on drugs, which is meeting until Friday in Vienna, there was also criticism of the United Nations for the cuts and isolationism of some countries.
"Many countries are turning inward, investing less in cooperation, and this trend has serious implications for the global drug problem," criticized the Director-General of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Ghada Waly.
"Production and trafficking in one place can have direct and devastating consequences in another," Waly warned.
Although it did not directly mention the United States, the Donald Trump administration has reduced its participation in multilateral forums and drastically cut funding for international cooperation since taking office on January 20.
The UNODC director recalled that, thanks to international funding, the UN agency has helped achieve record drug seizures in recent years, detect new synthetic opioids, and strengthen security at 180 vulnerable borders.
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However, Waly said, with the current cuts, the UNODC is struggling to maintain its deployment at a time when drug production and trafficking are at historic highs.
"Our ability to monitor illicit crops and track drug trafficking trends is in serious jeopardy," Waly warned.
The funding cut also compromises the UN agency's ability to help expand treatment for people with drug addiction.
