A NEW study on drug use among local schoolchildren has found that 12 year olds are drinking rum and smoking cocaine and marijuana.Compiled by the Guyana Drug Information Network, the report says that schoolchildren from as young as 12 years old are using marijuana, cocaine, and other illicit substances along with alcohol

and tobacco. “It’s an outrage, and we have to come up with a strategy to curb this,” Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan told a workshop held at Cara Lodge on Wednesday to launch the report.

Minister Ramjattan admitted to being very disheartened to stand and report that 52% of the students polled during the survey admitted to consuming alcohol once in their lifetime, 31% said they were drunk in the last 12 months, 16% had consumed alcohol in the last 30 days, and 4.9% said they were binge drinkers.

“My intention here is not to create a moral panic, but in all honesty, these statistics paint a picture which shames us all. It is an outrage, and we must do something about it,” the minister declared.

He noted that the government would seek to reduce drug demand and minimise harm by harnessing the resources of communities, law enforcement agencies, and the Ministries of Public Security, Health, Education and Social Protection. “We will be mimic men and not seek to reinvent the wheel when we know what is right and proper,” he posited.

Ramjattan said methods such as sports, recreation, music, positive parenting, and supply reduction to stabilize and eliminate street supply need to be implanted. “The objective is to reduce demand through the promotion of opportunities. We have to somehow prevent and delay drug use,” he opined.

The survey was sponsored by the Organisation of American States (OAS) and the Inter American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD). The report states that the average first-time marijuana user is 12.8 years old; the average first-time cocaine user is 12.1 years old, and the age of the average first-time user of other stimulants is 11.7 years.

In terms of marijuana, the one-year prevalence rate for public schools was 3.2%, while the one-year prevalence rate for private schools was 11.6%. Similarly, the one-month prevalence rate for public schools was 1.8%, while the one-month prevalence rate for private schools was 6.7%.

Cigarette use in private schools showed a significantly higher lifetime prevalence rate than public schools. The lifetime prevalence rate for private schools was 23%, while the lifetime prevalence rate for public schools was 16.3%.

The report said males generally showed greater prevalence rates and higher risks to drug use, while students at private schools showed higher prevalence rates when compared to their counterparts in public schools.

The survey found that, overall, students are aware of the dangers of drug use.

The report recommends that efforts be taken to reduce students’ access to drugs in public places such as sporting events and other outings of similar nature, and from being able to purchase alcohol and cigarettes in shops.

OAS Representative Jean Ricot Dormeus, Canadian High Commissioner Pierre Giroux, and Charge d’Affaires of the Embassy of the United States, Bryan Hunt, also spoke at the launch.

By Rebecca Ganesh