Thank You Chair,

As all delegations present in this Second Committee Session are aware, illicit drugs and their
trade has become an unfortunate element of the image of the Americas. The illegal drug trade
poses a threat to the stability of law enforcement and civil society and it does nothing but
leave violence and destruction in its wake. The OAS, as all delegations realize, is very
dedicated to combating this problem and encourages the development of projects focused on
supply and demand reduction and developing stronger anti-drug institutions within member
states.
Recent research and key sources of information, such as the Multilateral Evaluation
Mechanism (MEM) and the Inter-American Drug Observatory (OID), indicate that substance
abuse is rising in many member states; drugs, such as MDMA, also known as ecstasy, and
heroin, are appearing in areas previously unaffected, and the misuse of illicit or prescription
drugs is also a serious problem, especially in the younger, high school population of the
member states.
Facing this new challenge of drug abuse among the adolescent population of many member
states, it is crucial to establish awareness education programs on the consequences of drug
abuse in high schools of the Americas. These awareness education programs, proposed in the
resolution devised by the working committee, aim to promote awareness of the harmful
health effects of drug abuse for high school students and, through this, follow The CICADs
commitment to drug demand reduction.
This resolution will further promote awareness of the risks and consequences of drug abuse
for high school students through mainly urging the establishment of a working relationship
with the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids and the institution of education programs for high
school students that make secondary school students aware of the harmful medical
consequences of cocaine, amphetamine, heroin, and MDMA for recreational use. These four
drugs mentioned are the most commonly abused drugs in the Americas that are illicit in each
OAS member state. Therefore, the passing of this resolution should be of best interest for all
delegations.
As a final point, evidence-based drug education programs have been rationally designed
based on current scientific evidence, rigorously tested, and are shown to produce positive
results. Scientists have developed a broad range of programs that positively alter the balance
between risk and protective factors for drug abuse in families, schools, and communities.
Essentially, reducing drug abuse among individuals at a relatively young age, through
evidence-based drug education programs, is statistically proven to significantly reduce drug
use and drug addiction of individuals at a later age. That being the case, it is reasonable to
project that the implementation of such programs will effectively play an important role in
tackling the drug use and demand issue of young people in the OAS member states. Overall,
the Delegation of Honduras and other delegations that have worked together to formulate this
resolution maintain the idea that implementing awareness education programs on the
consequences of drug abuse in high schools of the Americas will prove to be beneficial
towards lowering the rates of drug abuse of young people among all member states.
Therefore, implementing this resolution will prove to better the drug situation of all member
states.

The Delegation Would Like To Yield Any Remaining Time to the Chair,