Is crack cocaine use becoming prevalent in the nation’s youth?

Last Monday when Attorney Richard Dickie Bradley appeared on The Morning Show, he made a comment indicating that crack cocaine use has become prevalent among young persons in Belize.  It was a startling statement that spurred us to check in with the National Drug Abuse Control Council (NDACC).  We didn’t find that in NDACC’s statistics, but the council’s director, Esner Vellos did explain that while there is little not no data on the use of the drug, it is an issue that the council is working to tackle and gather data on. 

And while the statistics is not yet available on the prevalence of crack cocaine in Belize, reports do show that the use of alcohol and marijuana are the popular choices within the youth population.  According to data obtained from the council’s outreach services, during 2017 – 2022, marijuana and alcohol abuse increased in people ages 24 years and under. Based on the data, the highest percentage of marijuana and alcohol abuse was recorded in the Toledo District, with a majority of individuals being women. Director Vellos, explained that while the data was limited, there has been an overall increase over the past five years.

We will have more on the drug use statistics in tomorrow’s newscast.