IN a bid to eliminate the use of drugs in the local school system, Head of the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) James Singh has said that his team will be partnering with the Ministry of Education to roll out a national anti-narcotics sensitisation programme.

According to Singh, the comprehensive programme will tackle both students and teachers, with particular emphasis on training teachers to identify drug users.

With teachers equipped with the requisite knowledge, authorities would have a better chance of identifying children who might be under the influence of drugs, and getting them the necessary help. This would also help authorities to identify the dealers.

“We’re working with the Ministry of Education and other agencies to develop a programme that allows us to go into the various schools across the region and sensitise persons about the effects of narcotics,” the CANU official said, adding:

“So, it’s not just working with the students, but also working with the teachers… They must be able to see the behavioral patterns of persons, as this gives us a better idea of if persons are on drugs or something else, so we could work with them also.”

He related that CANU is aware of the threat that the sale of illicit substances poses to society, and as such has been devising innovative ways of catching the drug traffickers, in keeping with its national drug strategy masterplan.

“As you would have seen recently, we are doing a lot of work in various communities, and the aim here is to target persons who engage in selling narcotics, regardless of where; whether it’s near a school or in that community itself… We recognise that there are new drugs present now in various communities, and we are working very closely within those communities,” Singh said.

In a recent interview with this publication, Singh said that CANU’s operations around the country are meant to create safe spaces within communities, so that there is no drug use or selling of narcotics in those areas.

He said that joint efforts with the Guyana Police Force (GPF) have produced great results, and have also helped the Unit achieve its goal.

It is for this reason that CANU intends to have continued joint collaboration efforts with the Police Force and other stakeholders to target the traffickers of various illicit substances, and provide the necessary support to drug users and victims of drug abuse.

In September 2021, the GPF and CANU destroyed over 2,000 kg of cocaine, marijuana, methamphetamine, and other illicit drugs. The narcotics that were destroyed were from operations conducted by the police and CANU over a two-year period.