US sponsors training for drug treatment professionals

karachi: The United States government has sponsored an eight-day Training for Drug Treatment Professionals in Pakistan on Universal Treatment Curriculum (UTC), said a press release issued by the American Consulate General in Karachi on Tuesday.

Kathryn Abate, International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) attaché at the United States Consulate General Karachi, Dr Farrukh Mahmood Ansari of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Pakistan, and Brigadier Noor ul Hassan, the force commander of the Regional Directorate of the Pakistan Anti-Narcotics Force in Sindh, participated in the opening ceremony in Karachi.

This training is the first in a series that will span the next year and cover all nine modules of the UTC. The UNODC, with INL funding, arranged this training in Lahore and Karachi that involves, in Karachi, trainers and 28 drug treatment professionals, including 12 women, representing government hospitals and nongovernmental organizations from Punjab, KP, Sindh, Balochistan, Islamabad, and Azad Kashmir. The US views capacity building as one of its most important engagements with its Pakistani partners, including the Government of Pakistan and its provinces, multiple NGOs, and international organisations.

Initiatives like these training courses will help improve conditions for treating drug abuse disorders in Pakistan, and help those who seek science-based treatment on international standards for their substance use disorder.