Over 100,000 drug addicts given treatment at public hospitals, drug rehabilitation centers in Myanmar

Thai and Myanmar drug addicts inject heroin and smoke amphetamine (background) 17 January 2000, on a boulder-strewn trail some 100 metres from the unmarked border with Thailand. AFP FILE PHOTO

NAYPYITAW — More than 100,000 drug addicts, mostly heroin abusers, received treatment at public hospitals and drug rehabilitation centres across Myanmar, according to sources from the Ministry of Health and Sports.

“According to figures of those registered patients from 1974 to 2017, there were 60,716 heroin abusers, 40,399 opium abusers, 3,205 stimulant tablet abusers, 306 anti-depressant abusers, 752 marijuana abusers and 5,462 abusers of other drugs. In 2018 alone, there were 10,849 old and new patients,” said a ministry official.

A survey from UNODC in 2018 shows that there were 41,000 hectares of poppy plantations in Shan and Kachin states in 2017 and they reduced to 36,100 hectares in 2018.

There were 37,300 hectares of poppy plantations across the country last year and the amount was significantly reduced compared to 2017. The country’s poppy cultivation acreage has been decreasing since 2014, the survey showed.

There were only 1,200 hectares of poppy plantations in Chin and Kayah states.

The acreage of poppy plantations has decreased by seven percent in northern Shan State, eight percent in eastern Shan State, 17 percent in southern Shan State and 15 percent in Kachin State.

Geographically speaking, Myanmar faces drug menace. Mostly, remote and less developed areas are facing problems of poppy cultivation and heroin and stimulant production.

There are now 26 large drug rehabilitation centres and 44 small centres.