World Drugs Report 2010: Estonia Gets the Second Place

With a 1.52% of the adult population using them, only Scotland has a higher use of opiates (1.54%) in Europe than Estonia. Estonia ranks in fact on the second place in the list published in the World Drugs Report 2010, made by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Although the cultivation of opiates is decreasing (23% less in the last two years), Estonia has a high rate of use. The rest of the countries of the European Union do not reach the 1%. Sirle Blumberg, Board member of NGO HVI Prevention Centre in Estonia, pointed out that «In that country, much younger population is using opiates.  Drug users are normally really young, around 20 years old». She said that she has even seen people that, with only 14 years, went to a needle exchange program looking for help. «This is also and important information because drug users only come to that programs if they feel that it is really necessary. The point is that the most of them are drug users since a long time ago», Blum ...