The UN General Assembly Special Session on drugs held in April 2016 has been organized by the international drug control entities, but has confirmed the inclusion of other UN agencies in the global debates on drugs. Out of these, WHO and UNDP have played a major role in linking drug policy with the priorities of protecting human rights and promoting sustainable development. In May 2017, the leadership of both agencies will change. This letter reviews the aspiring leaders of these agencies’ positions on drug policies through existing literature, providing more clarity on their past or current commitment to the issue of drug policy and harm reduction stakeholders.
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2.
DegenhardtLWhitefordHAFerrariAJ (2013) Global burden of disease attributable to illicit drug use and dependence: findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010. Lancet382(9904): 1564–1574.
Health Poverty Action (2016) Drug Policy and the Sustainable Development Goals: Why Drug Policy Reform is Essential to Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, London, UK: Health Poverty Action.
5.
HortonRSamarasekeraU (2016) WHO's Director-General candidates: Visions and priorities. Lancet388(10056): 2072–2095.
6.
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (2016a) Do No Harm, Health, Human Rights and People Who Use Drugs, Geneva, Switzerland: United Nations Publications.
7.
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (2016b) Get on the Fast-Track – The Life-Cycle Approach to HIV, Geneva, Switzerland: United Nations Publications.
8.
RoyalS (2007) “Action” et “information”. SWAPS. 7 January 2007.
United Nations Development Programme (2016) Reflections on Drug Policy and its Impact on Human Development: Innovative Approaches, New York, US: United Nations Publications.
12.
World Health Organization (2016) Public health dimension of the world drug problem, Draft decision A69/A/CONF./4 proposed by the delegations of Argentina, Australia, Colombia, Guatemala, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Panama, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, United States of America, Uruguay and Zambia. In: 69th world health assembly, Geneva, Switzerland, 23–28 May 2016, pp.1–2. Geneva: World Health Organization. Available at: http://apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/WHA69/A69_ACONF4-en.pdf.
