EMCDDA news

The General report of activities is an annual publication providing a detailed progress report of the EMCDDA's activities over a 12-month period. Published every spring, it catalogues the Centre's achievements in each area of its annual work programme. The report is a useful information source for all those seeking comprehensive information on the Centre and its work.

A number of decentralised agencies have been set up by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union to carry out specific legal, technical or scientific tasks within the European Union system. The majority work independently alongside the main EU institutions, adding value by helping to implement policy and promote the sharing of information and expertise in areas that impact on the lives of Europe’s 500 million citizens.

This brochure gives an overview of the missions of the EU agencies and describes our common objectives to strengthen the service we deliver to the EU institutions and ultimately to all EU citizens.

The Statistical bulletin is a key resource published yearly by the EMCDDA and provides access to the most recent statistical data relating to the drugs situation in Europe, including over 400 tables and graphs. It constitutes the epidemiological basis on which the EMCDDA's Annual report is written.

Drugnet Europe, the EMCDDA's quarterly newsletter, providesregular information on the Agency's activities to a broad readership.

In this issue: injecting drug use stable or declining; early-warning system annual meeting; EU scientific experts to assess risks of mephedrone; harm reduction moves to the mainstream; EMCDDA and EMA step up cooperation; European technical conference on drug supply indicators coming up; EMCDDA-CICAD cooperation; new products and services.

Commissioned each year by the EMCCDA and produced by the national focal points of the Reitox network, the National reports draw an overall picture of the drug phenomenon at national level in each EU Member state. These data are key information to the EMCCDA and are an important resource, among others for the compilation of its 'Annual report'.

Trends in injecting drug use in Europe is the title of the latest EMCDDA Selected issue publication. This volume brings together data from a wide variety of sources as it describes Europe’s current drug injecting problem and plots its trends in recent years.Responses to drug injecting and measures to reduce the harm caused by this form of drug use are also reviewed. The report finds that the available data point to a stable or declining trend of injecting in most European countries, with effective treatment and harm-reduction measures now reaching many users. Despite this, there is still a large population of drug injectors in Europe, and there continue to be signs of recent recruitment in some countries.

A multilingual summary of the contents is available >>

The General report of activities is an annual publication providing a detailed progress report of the EMCDDA’s activities over a 12-month period. It catalogues the Centre’s achievements in each area of its annual work programme. The report is a useful information source for all those seeking comprehensive information on the Centre and its work.

This manual compiles basic but evidence-based prevention principles, planning rules and evaluation tips. Additionally, it provides related documentation or references for download; it is hoped that this additional material will be particularly useful for readers who have difficulty accessing the scientific prevention literature. To illustrate the theoretical discussion, an intervention example, partly based on a real-life situation, gives a practical perspective.

Prices are an essential element of the illicit drug market, from both a supply and demand perspective. They are an indicator of drug availability and are an important tool for understanding the workings of drug supply mechanisms. They may also be used to help target law enforcement resources and assist criminal justice agencies with decisions related to prosecution and sentencing (e.g. assets recovery).

The EMCDDA has been collecting information on retail drug prices via its Reitox focal points for the last 15 years. Although considerable progress has been made in this area, there is still variation in data collection in Europe. To address this issue, the EMCDDA has released these Guidelines for collecting data on retail drug prices in Europe: issues and challenges in its Manuals series.

The Manual raises awareness on specific issues related to collecting data on retail drug prices and offers practical suggestions. It addresses difficulties in obtaining a definition of 'retail' prices, and discusses the challenge of obtaining a representative sample of illicit, and therefore hidden, transactions. Suggestions are made for a minimum set of variables to be recorded for each observation. Targeted at all those involved in data collection on drug prices in Europe, the Manual reviews the main data-collection methods, current national practices and data-management issues.

The purpose of this paper is to give meaning and insight into some of the key drug and alcohol issues that affect children from the perspectives of the children themselves. It is not to estimate the relative magnitude of a specific drug or alcohol problem or the numbers of children affected by it. Each section of this paper is preceded by one or two key statistics and whilst the quotations that follow may highlight a need to develop more robust and detailed statistics on a key issue, the overriding objective is to give the children a voice.

Drugnet Europe, the EMCDDA's quarterly newsletter, provides regular information on the Agency's activities to a broad readership.

In this issue: record number of new drugs in 2009; EMCDDA and ECDC assess anthrax outbreak among heroin users; global audit of HIV services for IDUs reveals low levels of provision; sharing information on drug treatment demand in the Mediterranean; drug use and pregnancy — challenges for public health; latest analysis of cocaine market highlights 'secondary extraction' laboratories in Europe; new products and services.

This report provides an overview of what is known about how cocaine is produced and trafficked into the European Union. It aims to provide a better understanding of the actors involved, the routes taken, and the scale of the problem in Europe. It also reviews some of the supply reduction responses already developed at European level. Its findings are based on the latest data and analysis available from specialised European and international organisations, NGOs and scholars.

This publication is structured in a way that provides a condensed review of key issues relevant to understanding how cocaine reaches European markets. Background information on the chemistry and legal status of cocaine and crack cocaine, as well as key European figures, are also provided.

This report provides an overview of what is known about how cocaine is produced and trafficked into the European Union. It aims to provide a better understanding of the actors involved, the routes taken, and the scale of the problem in Europe. It also reviews some of the supply reduction responses already developed at European level. Its findings are based on the latest data and analysis available from specialised European and international organisations, NGOs and scholars.

This publication is structured in a way that provides a condensed review of key issues relevant to understanding how cocaine reaches European markets. Background information on the chemistry and legal status of cocaine and crack cocaine, as well as key European figures, are also provided.

The EMCDDA’s 10th scientific monograph, entitled Harm reduction: evidence, impacts and challenges provides a comprehensive overview of the harm reduction field. Part I of the monograph looks back at the emergence of harm reduction approaches and their diffusion, and explores the concept from different perspectives, including international organisations, academic researchers and drug users. Part II is dedicated to current evidence and impacts of harm reduction and illustrates how the concept has broadened to cover a wide range of behaviours and harms. Part III addresses the current challenges and innovations in the field. The core audience of the monograph comprises policymakers, healthcare professionals working with drug users, as well as the wider interested public.

Prices are an essential element of the illicit drug market, from both a supply and demand perspective. They are an indicator of drug availability and are an important tool for understanding the workings of drug supply mechanisms. They may also be used to help target law enforcement resources and assist criminal justice agencies with decisions related to prosecution and sentencing (e.g. assets recovery).

The EMCDDA has been collecting information on retail drug prices via its Reitox focal points for the last 15 years. Although considerable progress has been made in this area, there is still variation in data collection in Europe. To address this issue, the EMCDDA has released these Guidelines for collecting data on retail drug prices in Europe: issues and challenges in its Manuals series.

The Manual raises awareness on specific issues related to collecting data on retail drug prices and offers practical suggestions. It addresses difficulties in obtaining a definition of 'retail' prices, and discusses the challenge of obtaining a representative sample of illicit, and therefore hidden, transactions. Suggestions are made for a minimum set of variables to be recorded for each observation. Targeted at all those involved in data collection on drug prices in Europe, the Manual reviews the main data-collection methods, current national practices and data-management issues.

The principal aim of these guidelines is to put in place a sound methodological and procedural basis for carrying out each risk assessment, by using a semi-quantitative assessment procedure. This publication is a revision of the Guidelines for the risk assessment of new synthetic drugs (published in the same series, in 1999).

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<![endif]-->The 2010 work programme is the first to fall under the EMCDDA&#8217;s new three-year strategy and work programme (2010&#8211;12). In terms of substantive technical activities, the three-year strategy aims to consolidate the core data sets held by the agency and enable more complex analysis of them. It also scales up and develops some new areas of strategic importance. This means that 2010 will necessarily be a formative and exploratory year during which the structures and approaches needed to deliver the objectives set out in the work programme are put in place.

This country overview provides a structured synopsis of the trends and characteristics of national drug problems in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2009. It consists of a summary of the national drug situation presenting brief information in key&#160; areas (drugs prevalence, prevention, harm reduction, drug laws etc.).

It has been produced within the framework of a technical cooperation and assistance project with the Western Balkans countries financed by the European Commission&#8217;s regional Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stabilisation (CARDS) fund.

This volume contains the English, Bosnian, Serbian and Croatian version.

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This country overview provides a structured synopsis of the trends and characteristics of national drug problems in Montenegro in 2009. It consists of a summary of the national drug situation presenting brief information in key&#160; areas (drugs prevalence, prevention, harm reduction, drug laws etc.).

It has been produced within the framework of a technical cooperation and assistance project with the Western Balkans countries financed by the European Commission&#8217;s regional Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stabilisation (CARDS) fund.

This volume contains the English and Montenegrin version.

This country overview provides a structured synopsis of the trends and characteristics of national drug problems in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in 2009. It consists of a summary of the national drug situation presenting brief information in key&#160; areas (drugs prevalence, prevention, harm reduction, drug laws etc.).

It has been produced within the framework of a technical cooperation and assistance project with the Western Balkans countries financed by the European Commission&#8217;s regional Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stabilisation (CARDS) fund.

This volume contains the English and Macedonian version.

This country overview provides a structured synopsis of the trends and characteristics of national drug problems in Albania in 2009. It consists of a summary of the national drug situation presenting brief information in key&#160; areas (drugs prevalence, prevention, harm reduction, drug laws etc.).

It has been produced within the framework of a technical cooperation and assistance project with the Western Balkans countries financed by the European Commission&#8217;s regional Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stabilisation (CARDS) fund.

This volume contains the English and Albanian version.

Wolfgang G&#246;tz, EMCDDA Director, and James Mack, Executive Secretary of Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD), met today in the sidelines of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) being held this week in Vienna. The organisations work together under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in 1999 between the EMCDDA and CICAD&#8217;s parent body, the Organisation of American States (OAS). The purpose of today's meeting was to review and update developments in the context of the MoU and discuss common interests in developing high-quality data-collection methods. Potential areas for joint activities of a technical nature were also explored. The Directors expressed their satisfaction that a joint EMCDDA&#8211;CICAD manual on developing drug information systems and establishing national focal points will be launched later this year.

Synthetic cathinones are increasingly being reported to the EMCDDA and Europol via the EU early-warning system (EWS). These &#8216;designer&#8217; compounds, structurally related to amphetamine, are derivatives of the parent compound cathinone, one of the psychoactive ingredients found in khat.

Some 15 synthetic cathinones are currently being monitored through the EWS, among these mephedrone. On 20 January, following an examination of the available information on mephedrone to date, the EMCDDA and Europol agreed to launch a formal procedure to collect further information on the substance in accordance with the Council Decision on the information exchange, risk assessment and control of new psychoactive substances. This will lead to the production of an EMCDDA&#8211;Europol Joint report to be presented to the Council of the EU, the European Commission and the European Medicines Agency. On the basis of this report, a decision can be taken on whether or not to launch a formal risk-assessment procedure on the substance.

Related links

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ECDC&#8211;EMCDDA threat assessment

On 11 February, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the EMCDDA released a joint threat assessment report on the recent anthrax outbreak among drug users in the UK and Germany. ECDC is coordinating this issue at EU level in cooperation with the European Commission, while the EMCDDA is playing an advisory role and supporting the dissemination of information through its networks.

A number of decentralised agencies have been set up by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union to carry out specific legal, technical or scientific tasks within the European Union system. The majority work independently alongside the main EU institutions, adding value by helping to implement policy and promote the sharing of information and expertise in areas that impact on the lives of Europe&#8217;s 500 million citizens.

This brochure gives an overview of the missions of the EU agencies and describes our common objectives to strengthen the service we deliver to the EU institutions and ultimately to all EU citizens.

Drugnet Europe, the EMCDDA's quarterly newsletter, provides regular information on the Agency's activities to a broad readership.In this issue: 2010 work programme and budget; EMCDDA and Europol step up information collection on mephedrone; upcoming Guidelines for collecting data on retail drug prices in Europe; European drug prevention quality standards; EMCDDA signs accord with Ukrainian Ministry of Health; new Czech penal code enters into force; EMCDDA Management Board &#8211; changes at the helm; new products and services.

This report reviews developments in the neuroscience of addiction, explores how they might affect the way we view and treat drug problems, and considers the issues that they raise for drug policy in Europe. In language that is easily accessible, the report presents the complex brain processes involved in addition and the ethical implications inherent to current addiction research.

This briefing paper for policymakers presents how new discoveries in neurobiology have the potential to transform our perception of drug addiction and its treatment, whilst also considering the ethical issues such treatment can raise. It balances an analysis of the latest developments in the field with a call for rigorous testing before implementation.

Drugnet Europe, the EMCDDA's quarterly newsletter, provides regular information on the Agency's activities to a broad readership.In this issue: EMCDDA releases Annual report 2009; Selected issues 2009: Drug offences: sentencing and other outcomes and Polydrug use: patterns and responses; EMCDDA-CARDS project with the Western Balkans; Bridging the research gap in the field of illicit drugs in the EU.

Smokable herbal mixtures under the brand name &#8216;Spice&#8217; are known to have been sold on the Internet and in various specialised shops since at least 2006 and anecdotal reports suggest that those products may have been available as early as 2004. Although advertised as an &#8216;exotic incense blend which releases a rich aroma&#8217; and &#8216;not for human consumption&#8217;, when smoked, Spice products have been reported by some users to have effects similar to those of cannabis.

The sentences that offenders receive for drug law violations across the European Union are examined for the first time in this &#8216;Selected issue&#8217;. By analysing the most recent year&#8217;s statistics, this report attempts to answer the question: What is the most likely outcome for an offender after being stopped by police for a drug law offence of use or personal possession, or supply or trafficking? An online annex provides links to results by country (pdf).

A multilingual summary of the contents is available >>

This 'Selected issue' looks at the concomitant or consecutive use of different licit and illicit drugs (polydrug use) among adolescents, young adults and problem drug users. Data from school and general population surveys, and on drug treatment entrants and drug-related deaths are analysed to describe the many forms and consequences of this widespread pattern of drug use. The responses to polydrug use in Europe are reviewed in the light of the scientific literature, with the aim of identifying the most effective interventions. An online annex provides links to additional tables and figures.

A multilingual summary of the contents is available >>

The report on the state of the drugs problem in Europe presents the EMCDDA's yearly overview of the drug phenomenon. This is an essential reference book for policymakers, specialists and practitioners in the drugs field or indeed anyone seeking the latest findings on drugs in Europe. Published every autumn, the report contains non-confidential data supported by an extensive range of figures.

The conference Identifying Europe&#8217;s information needs for effective drug policy marked the 15th anniversary of the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), and our activity of monitoring drugs and drug addiction in the European Union. It had several objectives: to better understand the current needs of policymakers, practitioners and researchers, to identify new developments in the drugs field and new results of drug-related research, and to provide input on the future work of the EMCDDA and its partners.

This publication summarises the presentations and discussions from the plenary and parallel sessions. It reflects the dynamism and commitment of those who study and respond to the drugs problem, and who made the conference such a productive, stimulating and successful event. The content of this publication will therefore be a vital tool for guiding the further development of our activities here in Lisbon.

The European Union and Ukraine will share information on drugs more systematically in future, thanks to a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in Kiev today between the EU drugs agency (EMCDDA) and the Ukrainian Ministry of Health.

The accord is the fruit of bilateral talks initiated in Lisbon in 2006 between the EU drugs agency and the&#160; Ukrainian authorities, and follows a series of working meetings and diplomatic visits. The EMCDDA Management Board adopted the MoU at its meeting in Lisbon in December 2009 on the eve of that year's&#160;&#160; EU-Ukraine Summit (4 December, Kiev).

The Ukrainian Medical and Monitoring Centre on Drugs and Alcohol (UMMCDA) of the Ministry of Health has been appointed the national centre to collect and analyse data on the Ukrainian drug and alcohol situation.&#160;&#160; The new agreement establishes cooperation between the EMCDDA and the Ukrainian competent bodies (particularly the UMMCDA) in the collection, processing and dissemination of drug information.

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