The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), the EU drugs information agency, is beginning to develop its three-year strategy for the period 2016–18. We think that if we learn more about the expectations of stakeholders and partners at the start of this exercise, we will be in a better position to define the agency’s medium- to long-term direction. With this in mind, we are inviting interested parties to help us by answering a short web-based questionnaire.
The EMCDDA’s mission is to provide the European Union and its Member States with a factual overview of European drug problems and a solid evidence base to support the drugs debate. Its work is focused on several core tasks, including:
- monitoring the state of the drugs problem, on the basis of key epidemiological indicators;
- monitoring the solutions applied to drug-related problems across the Member States and informing on best practices;
- assessing the risks of new psychoactive substances and maintaining a rapid information system with regard to their use; and,
- developing tools and instruments to help Member States monitor and evaluate their national policies, and the European Commission to monitor and evaluate EU policies.
Important progress is being made in the implementation of all these core tasks during the current 2013–15 strategy; in particular, several areas have been scaled up in order to respond to the evolving drug situation and to policy developments, as follows:
- early detection and monitoring of new psychoactive substances through the Early Warning System on new drugs, and alerting policy to the risks that these substances pose for EU citizens;
- developing and/or improving tools and concepts for monitoring data on illicit drug supply (drug markets, drug-related crime and drug supply reduction);
- providing information on best practices.
In 2016–18, the EMCDDA and its partners in the Member States are likely to face increasing constraints with regard to resources; therefore, the main challenge for the agency will be to further prioritise investments so that it can fulfil its legal obligations and safeguard the achievements made since its establishment, while remaining responsive to the emerging trends and developments in the drugs situation in Europe.
For further information on the EMCDDA’s mandate, current strategy (2013–15), key programming documents and activities, please visit the About section of the EMCDDA website.
We look forward to receiving your thoughts and ideas for developing our next three-year strategy. Your input will help us refine our approach and ensure that our future work remains relevant to European needs.
This public consultation process will be open until 31 July 2014.
Thank you in advance for your valuable contribution.