The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in collaboration with the Drug Control Headquarters (DCHQ) of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, is organizing a three-day consultative meeting for regional countries on the Strengthening Family Program for Parents and Youth (10-14 years) at Azadi Hotel in Tehran on 24-26 August.
The objective of the meeting is to introduce a new evidence-based family skills program that focuses on families with children in their early adolescence (between the ages of 10-14 years) to catalyze change in adolescents’ health behaviors.
The UNODC Regional Program for Afghanistan and Neighboring Countries, which is supporting this consultative meeting, seeks to facilitate regional cooperation and action on the prevention of drug use, treatment of drug dependence, and to reduce the spread of HIV among high risk populations. Approximately 50 experts from the eight countries covered under the Regional Program (Afghanistan, Islamic Republic of Iran, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan) will participate in the consultation.
The UNODC promotes the ‘International Standards on Drug Use Prevention’ globally and in the region. In line with what is promoted in these standards, the overarching aim of introducing the Strengthening Families Programme is to inform and encourage governments, policy makers, and other partners, to take the necessary actions to implement gender-sensitive, evidence-based, prevention strategies and treatment services for substance abuse disorders.
This is done in order to provide everyone, including young girls and women, with the skills and opportunities to make healthy choices, and patients, with the optimal support to ultimately improve their life circumstances.