The level of drug abuse in Nigeria amongst youths is at an all time high, with the influx of illegal drugs such as tramadol and codeine from outside the borders, and the increasing use of these drugs in the partying atmosphere contributing to an alarming rate of morbidity and mortality. While drug abuse is a problem throughout both the developed and developing world, it is not as commonly addressed and discussed in the third world due to cultural stigma and lack of understanding, more pressing issues of corruption, poverty, lack of access to basic needs such as food and water, etc. However, as these countries such as Nigeria continue their slow and steady climb out of poverty and their economies improve with the influx of foreign investment and capital alongside improvement in security and corruption, the issue of drugs will increase due to the rising numbers of both legal and illegal pharmaceutical industries and modernization and/or westernization of youth culture through the prevalence of social and traditional media outlets. Drugs in Nigeria are often used as a means to suppress the impoverished into a more dependent state and increase the wealth disparity between the rich who supply, and the poor who consume. It is our mission to improve drug education in the youth prophylactically before they have been exposed to drug use and exhibit signs and symptoms of addiction that are difficult to reverse. We will advocate and teach in school classrooms, community outreach settings, drug rehabilitation centers, hospital inpatient units and outpatient clinics, prison facilities, and one on one with those in need. Once we have raised enough funds, we will attempt to create our own state of the art drug rehabilitation center that will focus on cognitive behavioral therapy, rather than medical treatment, and allow dependent patients to achieve sobriety in a monitored and moderated setting focused on their recovery rather than punishment and neglect. With these efforts, we should be able to prevent a significant number of future cases and curb current ones, while exponentially increasing the knowledge of a country that can show significant economic gain with an improvement in health outcomes that is easily achievable.
