Meeting of the National Drug Observatories in the Caribbean
DRUG CONSUMPTION SITUATION IN THE
CARIBBEAN
Pernell Clarke
Coordinator of Information and Research for the Caribbean
OID/CICAD
Barbados, June 14 – 16, 2005
Summary
• The Caribbean and Drugs
• Supply Statistics
• Consumption Statistics (School Surveys)
• Emerging Trends
• Discussion
The Caribbean and Drugs
Supply Statistics
• The region continues to be an important trans-shipment area because of geography
• Highest volume: Marijuana
• The supply of cocaine from South American producers is declining
• Designer drugs amphetamines, ecstasy etc are increasingly being trafficked
Supply Statistics• Sources include:
– Police Depts.– Prosecutors– Customs – Coast Guard– National Drug Observatories
• Data may include:– Production of illicit crops (land area under cultivation)– Drug Seizures (quantities in lbs, kgs.)– Seizures of chemical precursors (types and quantities)– Labs Discovered– Persons arrested for drug crimes
The Caribbean – Cannabis Seizures
20,018
52,678
76,48584,224
45,64150,062
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
90,000
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
The Caribbean – Cocaine Seizures
12,086
5,293
7,240
15,829
8,5079,857
0
2,000
4,000
6,000
8,000
10,000
12,000
14,000
16,000
18,000
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
The Caribbean – Persons Arrested
19,271
16,361
21,797
18,04919,486
15,504
0
5,000
10,000
15,000
20,000
25,000
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
Consumption Statistics
• General Population Surveys
• School Surveys
• Treatment Centres
• Emergency Rooms
• Prisoners
• Street Children
• Key Informants
Current world situation
OID-OID-CICAD / OACICAD / OASS
Drug Use Estimates. Last year prevalences,
2001-2003
All drugs Cannabis Ampheta-
minesEcstasy Cocaine Opiates
Millions of persons
185 146.2 29.6 8.3 13.3 15.2
% of population
3.0% 2.3% 0.5% 0.1% 0.2% 0.2%
% of pop.
15-64 yrs. 4.7% 3.7% 0.7% 0.2% 0.3% 0.4%
Source: UNODC 2004 Report
Prevalence - Cigarettes
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
Bahamas Barbados St Kitts and
Nevis
St Lucia St Vincent and
the
Grenadines
Suriname Dominica Guyana Grenada Trinidad and
Tobago
Lif etime
Annual
Current
Current Prevalence by Gender - Cigarettes
2.2
5.1
2.7
9.5
5.3
14.6
5.3
1.9
6.3
10.7
2
3.5
1.8
4.8
2.3
5
2.6
1.4
5.3
6.5
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
Bahamas Barbados St Kitts and
Nevis
St Lucia St Vincent and
the
Grenadines
Suriname Dominica Guyana Grenada Trinidad and
Tobago
Males
Females
Prevalence - Alcohol
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts and
Nevis
St Lucia St Vincent and
the
Grenadines
Suriname Grenada Trinidad and
Tobago
Lifetime
Annual
Current
Current Prevalence by Gender - Alcohol
24
29.4
35.9
28.6
26
50.8
37.8
29.7
40.2
28.8
19.2
27.1 27.2
14.6
21.1
41.3
23.5
19.3
31.4
23.1
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts and
Nevis
St Lucia St Vincent and
the
Grenadines
Suriname Grenada Trinidad and
Tobago
Males
Females
Prevalence - Marijuana
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts and
Nevis
St Lucia St Vincent and
the
Grenadines
Suriname Grenada Trinidad and
Tobago
Lifetime
Annual
Current
Current Prevalence By Gender - Marijuana
7.3
10.1
5.9
2.8
6
14.2
9.5
2.2
9.5
5.5
1.9
33.3
1.5
3.2
6.3
2.8
0.5
4.7
2.2
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts and
Nevis
St Lucia St Vincent and
the
Grenadines
Suriname Grenada Trinidad and
Tobago
Males
Females
Age of First Use - Cigarettes
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts and
Nevis
St Lucia St Vincent and
the Grenadines
Suriname Trinidad and
Tobago
9 or <
10 or 11
12 or 13
14 or 15
16 or >
Age of First Use - Alcohol
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts and
Nevis
St Lucia St Vincent and
the Grenadines
Suriname Trinidad and
Tobago
9 or <
10 or 11
12 or 13
14 or 15
16 or >
Age of First Use - Marijuana
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts and
Nevis
St Lucia St Vincent and
the Grenadines
Suriname Trinidad and
Tobago
9 or <
10 or 11
12 or 13
14 or 15
16 or >
Perception of Harm From Smoking Cigarettes
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Tobago
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts & Nevis St Lucia St Vincent & the
Grenadines
Suriname Trinidad and
Not Harmful
Very Harmful
Don’t Know
Perception of Harm From Frequently Drinking Alcohol
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Tobago
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts & Nevis St Lucia St Vincent & the
Grenadines
Suriname Trinidad and
Not Harmful
Very Harmful
Don’t Know
Perception of Harm From Frequently Smoking Marijuana
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Tobago
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts & Nevis St Lucia St Vincent & the
Grenadines
Suriname Trinidad and
Not Harmful
Very Harmful
Don’t Know
Perception of Harm From Sometimes Smoking Marijuana
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Tobago
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts & Nevis St Lucia St Vincent & the
Grenadines
Suriname Trinidad and
Not Harmful
Very Harmful
Don’t Know
Perception of Harm From Sometimes Taking Cocaine
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Tobago
Bahamas Barbados Dominica Guyana St Kitts & Nevis St Lucia St Vincent & the
Grenadines
Suriname Trinidad and
Not Harmful
Very Harmful
Don’t Know
Other Variables
• Frequency of use• Mode of Use• Demographic • Family background, living conditions,
social status• KAPB• Deviance (besides drug use), school
performance, etc
Trend Data….the next frontier
• Assessing changes in drug use (types of drugs, direction of change, rate of change)
• Assessing the changes in Users (age of first use, frequency of use, reasons for use, characteristics of users)
• Determining risk factors (Are they the same? Are there new ones? Is the order of importance changing?)
• Evaluation (Impact of interventions, treatment, supply reduction etc)*
*Must be carefully done. The use of a control group will usually present a better scientific evaluation, but this is not always feasible.
USA School Survey:USA School Survey:Last year Prevalences of any drug by Last year Prevalences of any drug by
gradegrade
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
'91 '92 '93 '94 '95 '96 '97 '98 '99 '00 '01 '02 '03
Ra
te (
%)
8o grade 10o grade 12o grade
USA-Chile School Surveys:USA-Chile School Surveys:Last year Prevalences of Last year Prevalences of cannabiscannabis
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
'91 '92 '93 '94 '95 '96 '97 '98 '99 '00 '01 '02 '03
Rat
e (%
)
USA CHILE
Recap
• Supply: Marijuana, cocaine, designer drugs• Supply statistics are available from many sources.
Need to screen for quality and consistency• Demand: Alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy??• Consumption surveys (secondary schools) need to
be done at least every two years if we are to scientifically identify trends.
The End