Drug Treatment Centers in Afghanistan: Creating a Participatory Approach to Tackling the Drug Trade.

摘要

This thesis assesses drug-treatment quality in the three Afghan provinces of Kabul, Kandahar, and Badakhshan by evaluating the extent to which programs and centers meet United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and World Health Organization (WHO) standards of care. The assessment is structured to show how recovery capital, institutional development, and community action sway an addict's ability to quit drugs successfully. In contextualizing the case studies, a social-economic and political framework is developed that reveals linkages among addiction, poverty, and drug trafficking. The most successful drug treatment programs follow UNODC/WHO standards, enrich community networks, invest in developing human capital, and adapt treatment protocols to Afghanistan's unique circumstances. Provinces with vibrant economic markets are the most effective at providing quality drug treatment because they are more socially invested in their communities. The thesis recommends that Afghanistan consider factors such as poverty, economic opportunity, governance, mental health, and education when tackling the narcotics trade. Social programs cannot exist in a weak governance system that tolerates violence. Properly caring for addicts and reducing the poverty rate will improve trust among partnerships, instill a sense of empowerment within the poor, create an outlet for social change, and give the community incentives to move away from the illicit drug market.