The limited data available suggest that most overdose deaths involve multiple substances.Toxicological findings from 22 countries show that a median of 67 per cent of overdose deaths involve more than one substance.In 17 countries with available data, opioids and sedatives/tranquilizers are most…
Cannabis, ATS and opioids account for the highest numbers of people in drug-related treatment globally, with variation between regions and countries.In most reporting countries, cannabis or opioids are the most common primary drug among those in treatment. However, in the Caribbean, South America…
The use of cannabis and stimulant drugs continues to increaseGlobally, the use of cannabis and stimulant drugs such as amphetamines, cocaine and "ecstasy" increased in 2024, while the use of opioids remained largely stable.
Cocaine use remains concentrated in established markets, but emerging markets are gaining relevance.North America and Western and Central Europe have the largest number of users, while prevalence is highest in Oceania, followed by the Americas and Western and Central Europe.Alongside these…
The use of cannabis continues to grow in almost all regions of the world.The number of cannabis users has increased worldwide over the past 20 years, particularly in Africa, Asia and the Americas, while remaining relatively stable in Europe and Oceania.The annual prevalence of cannabis use has also…
Progress on strengthening the prevention and treatment of substance abuse – as formulated in SDG target 3.5 – remains limited.Coverage of treatment interventions for substance use disorders remains low globally, with new estimates for this indicator suggesting that, at the minimum, 8.2 per cent of…
Socio-economic profiles of people in drug-related treatment vary between regions, although this likely also partly reflects broader regional socio-economic differences.Based on data from 56 countries, employment status varies by region and subregion: in Asia, people in treatment are more likely to…
Stimulant drug use varies across countries and regionsAmphetamines are the most commonly used stimulant drug globally, followed by cocaine and "ecstasy"-type substances. Men show higher use across all stimulant drugs, though the ratio of men to women is lower for "ecstasy"-type substances.Cocaine…
Synthetic drug markets vary widely, with different substances dominating across countries and regionsThe most commonly used synthetic drugs differ by region: non-medical use of tramadol dominates West and Central Africa and methamphetamine is most prevalent in East and South-East Asia.New…
Fentanyls continue to account for the largest share of harm from the non-medical use of NPS synthetic opioids, in particular in North America, but the arrival on the market of nitazenes and orphines , which are often more potent than fentanyls, has led to a number of acute emergencies and fatal…
Between 2000 and 2020, cannabis in Western and Central Europe and parts of South-Eastern Europe became more potent, more affordable and more frequently used in a number of countries, although these trends have stabilized in recent years.Despite this stabilization, the number of cannabis-related…
Limited data suggest stable or declining NPS use among young people, with some exceptions.Time-series data on NPS use among young people are scarce and largely limited to high-income countries.Where data are available, the use of NPS is generally stable or declining, as corroborated by recent…
