Last month, Association Margina – a non-governmental, non-profit association which aims to support marginalised young people in Bosnia and Herzegovina with a special focus on drug use and HIV – marked the tenth anniversary of their formation. Members, guests and volunteers attended a special ceremony in city of Zenica to celebrate ten years of existence and successful work.

Association Margina was created in 2003 in Zenica by a group of people gathering around a common vision – that every individual from marginalised groups of society in Bosnia and Herzegovina needs to have health and social care. At the very begining of the Association's work, private resources of the founders were used. With great effort and dedication, the organisation quickly began implementing programmes and has gone from strength to strength since.

President Denis Dedajic, in a short address to the audience, expressed great satisfaction with the achievements of Association Margina during the past decade, and reflected on the very beginnings when Margina operated from a renovated garage and consisted of just a few dedicated enthusiasts. At the ceremony, plaques and certificates were awarded to the institutions and individuals who have contributed to the development of Association Margina during the first decade of its existence – including IDPC – and those present took the opportunity to congratulate their hosts and wish them well for the future.

Alongside this event, Association Margina also organised a three-day symposium: “Analysis of the cost-effectiveness of services for the prevention and treatment of HIV and Hepatitis C among people who inject drugs in Bosnia and Herzegovina”. The symposium was supported by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and was administered by UNDP. It gathered professionals together to facilitate broad discussion on the topic. The need for strong cooperation and coordination between governmental and non-governmental sectors was raised, and particular emphasis was placed on financial issues and the necessity of rationalising health systems and optimising existing services in order to achieve more efficient results.

In conclusion, all participants agreed on the importance of alternative programmes and services, and the desired goals which can only be achieved through joint efforts and working together. A final report based on this topic will be available soon (the first document of this kind in Bosnia and Herzegovina, if not the whole region).

Keep up-to-date with drug policy developments by subscribing to the IDPC Monthly Alert.

Association Margina celebrates 10 years

A UK ban on khat - widely used in the Somali community - comes into force in the next few months. But there is anger in Kenya, where thousands of farmers depend on exports of the herbal stimulant.

Somali campaigners against the herbal stimulant khat are celebrating on Tuesday, 

. They have invited some Conservative MPs who supported them in their fight to ban it. The ban is expected to come into force in the next few months.

But anti-khat activists have been holding victory parades since the home secretary announced khat is to be banned.

By making such decisions, Theresa May defied government scientists and some of her fellow MPs. But she became an unlikely hero of the Somali community.

Click here to read the full article and watch the video.

Khat producers left high and dry after UK ban

Guatemalan President Otto Perez Molina and other government officials said repeatedly this week that they are considering legalizing and regulating opium poppy production in areas where it is already being grown illicitly.

"We started exploring the capacity that we could have for controlled planting," said Perez Molina. "What that means is that we would know exactly what extensions are being planted, what the production would be and that the sale would also be well controlled, especially for medicinal use."

Interior Minister Mauricio Lopez said the government was considering both regulated legal cultivation and alternative development.

"There are two paths, one is cultivated substitutes, and the other is the alternative which is controlled cultivation," Lopez explained. "This is what is already being done in other countries such as India and China, that is to say identifying hectares clearly, seeing how they are grown, carrying out the harvest, taking control of the commercialization and above all making sure this serves mainly the pharmaceutical industry."

Guatemala considers legalizing opium growing for medicinal market

appointed 15 high-level scientists to serve on the agency’s 

 for the period 2014–16. The selection followed a call for expressions of interest in the Official Journal of the European Union in February this year which yielded 79 eligible applications. The new members have been informed today of the Management Board’s decision. The mandate of the current Committee draws to a close at the end of 2013.

The 15 members — selected from the EU Member States and Norway — were chosen, following a public selection process, on the basis of scientific merit and independence and their expertise in the most relevant scientific fields linked to the problems of drugs and drug addiction today. One third of the scientists appointed are new members, while 10 previously served on the Committee. As members are appointed in a personal capacity, they are required to give their opinions independently of their country and of the Community institutions.

EU drugs agency announces Scientific Committee line-up for next three years


Remembering the Rio Declaration of 2011 that acknowledged the limited efficacy that repressive law enforcement policies have on the trade and use of illegal drugs. Calling on the police to develop smarter drug enforcement strategies in collaboration with other government sectors and society members.

Based on the discussions at the 2013 International Conference on Drug Policy and Policing, a set of principles on drug law enforcement practice are proposed.

Keep up-to-date with drug policy developments by subscribing to the IDPC Monthly Alert.

The Frankfurt principles on drug law enforcement

With nearly a month to go before their signature-gathering deadline, organizers of an Alaska marijuana legalization initiative are well-placed to qualify for the ballot, but it's not a sure thing yet. The Campaign to Regulate Marijuana told local media outlets last week they have already gathered almost 45,000 signatures, nearly half again the 31,169 valid voter signatures they need to take the issue to voters.

Campaigners said they would continue to seek signatures up until a January 21 deadline. Initiative campaigners want a healthy number of excess signatures because they must assume that some number of signatures will be deemed invalid.

A common rule of thumb is that 25% to 30% of gathered signatures will be ruled invalid. As things now stand, if 30% of the signatures were found invalid, it would barely qualify.

If the measure qualifies for the ballot, Alaska could become the next state to legalize marijuana because even if other states qualify initiatives for the November ballot, Alaskans would vote on their measure in August.

Alaska marijuana legalisation petition passes goal

The Directorate General Health and Consumers (DG SANCO) of the European Commission invites non-governmental organisations and networks to apply for a membership of the EU HIV/AIDS Civil Society Forum (CSF). The involvement of civil society is one of the cornerstones of European HIV/AIDS policy as presented in the Commission communication "on combating HIV/AIDS in the European Union and neighbouring countries, 2009-2013" (COM/569/2009)pdf(62 KB) Choose translations of the previous link.

The HIV/AIDS Civil Society Forum is composed of NGOs and other civil society organisations from EU Member States, Candidate and accession countries, EEA countries, and selected countries belonging to the European Neighborhood Policy area.

The aim of the Forum is to facilitate and improve the exchange between civil society organisations across Europe and to support the HIV/AIDS Think Tank and DG SANCO on matters related to the response HIV/AIDS. The CSF meetings are organised twice per year in close co-operation with the co-chairs, currently representatives of AIDS Action Europe (AAE) and the European AIDS Treatment Group (EATG).

Call for expression of interest to become a member of the EU HIV/AIDS Civil Society Forum

Needle vending machines could be rolled out for the first time in Victoria this year as part of trial to reduce infection rates among drug users.

Yarra Drug and Health Forum has been investigating a trial as an addition to existing needle exchange programs across Melbourne. The machines are unmarked and contain one-use sterile equipment and disposal bins. Syringes are either provided free or for a small fee such as $2.

Yarra Drug and Health Forum chief executive Greg Denham said restrictive opening hours of programs left a dangerous gap in which users could not access clean equipment.

Most needle exchange programs in Melbourne operate weekdays and between business hours.

''It's a logical next step to make sure we make clean syringes available when they're needed, such as weekends,'' he said.

Needle vending machines trial proposed for Melbourne, Australia

People who use drugs, often comit small crimes to obtain money for the substance. In Bulgaria there are about 2,000 drug users in prison, about 20% of all prisoners. Society expects that the prison "will do" - will punish and correct unwanted behavior. But drug dependence should be treated as a health issue. Could the drug-crime cycle be interrupted if these people had the chance to receive treatment instead of prison? "

Initiative for Health Foundation video

Injecting drug use among adolescents has been largely overlooked in responses to HIV. At Harm Reduction International we have undertaken the first global snapshot of available data on this issue – copies are available outside (And online at http://www.ihra.net/contents/1431 )

National population size estimates are exceptionally rare for this age group. Under 18s are often not included behavioural surveillance. Specific research is quite rare. A lot of what is available is isolated, one off or old. In other words most countries don’t know their epidemic

Early onset of injecting, and having recently begun injecting, have been associated with increased risks of HIV and hepatitis C transmission.

Low ages of initiation are clear across regions. In Nepal, for example,it is estimated that 20% of people who inject may be under 18.

A third of young people who inject reported starting under the age of 15 in Albania – a quarter in Romania. In Indonesia adolescents are almost twice as likely to share needles than older counterparts. They are less likely to test for HIV

In Ukraine it has been estimated that there are just over 50,000 adolescents injecting drugs. According to data from harm reduction services, about 800 were reached last year.

Injecting drug use among adolescents has been largely overlooked in responses to HIV.

At Harm Reduction International we have undertaken the first global snapshot of available data on this issue – copies are available outside (And online at http://www.ihra.net/contents/1431 )

National population size estimates are exceptionally rare for this age group.

Under 18s are often not included behavioural surveillance. Specific research is quite rare. A lot of what is available is isolated, one off or old. In other words most countries don’t know their epidemic

A third of young people who inject reported starting under the age of 15 in Albania – a quarter in Romania.

In Indonesia adolescents are almost twice as likely to share needles than older counterparts. They are less likely to test for HIV

- See more at: http://unaidspcbngo.org/?p=20779#sthash.5xlyNcQg.dpuf

Harm Reduction International’s intervention on youth thematic segment

AIDS Foundation East-West (AFEW) has become a network of independent local organisations working in the countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The new status of AFEW is effective as of November 2013. At the moment, the AFEW Network consists of six members operating in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, the Netherlands, Russia, Tajikistan and Ukraine; with AFEW in the Netherlands serving as the international secretariat of the Network. The local organizations are a follow up of AFEW’s representative branches that existed until the structural change, and therefore they ensure the continuation of the same high quality project implementation and staff expertise.

With the new organisational structure, AFEW Network has expanded its mission and field of engagement. The Steering Committee met in November in Amsterdam and agreed to prioritise the issues of access to quality health care and the fight against stigma and discrimination.

AFEW Network will continue to promote health and increased access to prevention, treatment and care forpublic health concerns such as HIV, TB, viral hepatitis and sexual reproductive health and rights. The focus and objectives of the members of AFEW Network also have been updated to reflect the local conditions and the needs of the local societies:

Capacity building of local NGOs and governmental organizations;

Development of informational and educational materials and events to inform the target population;

Serving as an effective liaison and partnership with community and governmental structure;

Piloting and expanding innovative approaches to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support.

“This change in structure will allow each member of the Network to independently make programmatic decisions in response to the changing epidemiological and social environment in the countries,” - said Anke van Dam, executive director of AFEW Network. “Additionally, the new structure will make local organisations eligible to compete for national HIV programme funds.”
The new organisational structure will retain AFEW’s highest standards of transparency and accountability by carrying out regular internal and external audits and each network member having a local board of trustees. Lastly, AFEW Network will continue providing good governance to secure success in project implementation.

AIDS foundation website will be fully launched in January 2014.

AIDS Foundation East-West becomes a network of independent local organisations

At the end of each calendar year, Youth RISE brings together a new group of young harm reduction and drug policy activists, drug users and young people affected by drug policy from around the world to join our International Working Group (IWG). The IWG play a vital role in the work of Youth RISE delivering vital elements of organisations work to ensure Youth RISE is effectively representing young people who use drugs and that the organisation is communicating the needs of young people who use drugs from around the world.

The IWG members, along with the coordinators, take major decisions regarding work plans, advocacy, and strategic planning for the network. The IWG also provide regional representation, experience, guidance and support to Youth RISE enabling it to achieve its goals as well as helping develop the infrastructure needed for the sustainability of the Youth RISE network.

If you would like to be an IWG member for 2014, please read the the terms of reference carefully and see if the role is suited to you.

Click here to have access to more information.

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