Statement by
WINSPEARE GUICCIARDI
Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva to the Commission on Narcotic Drugs, twenty-fifth session
Februal 1973.
It is now just Luo yearu pince the United Nations fund for Drug Abuse Control vas inaugurated. Ibs creation han instilled new life and vigour into the international community's efforts to bring under more effective
control the world-wide traffic in narcotic drugs. Through the Fund
much needed financial aid and leadership has been provided to supplement
the efforts of the United Nations Narcotics Commission, the International
Narcotics Control Bocad and the Division of Narcotic Drugs, and to
develop a comprehensive programme of law enforcement, medical research, crop substitution and preventive education on a broad front in the most critically affected areas of the world. A new and potentially powerful
weapon has thus been forged and added to the armaments now available to cope with this terrible world-wide scourge, which has been the cause of unbelievable suffering, degradation and death for countless human beings
in all parts of the world.
After careful study of the two years' experience to date, the Secretary-General has decided on the following organizational structure and arrangerents affecting the Division of Narcotic Drugs and the United Nations Fund for Drug Abuse Control. These arrangement 3 (set out graphically in the attached chart) are intended to ensure the most effective integration and co-ordination of the activities of the Division and the Fund, to guard against duplication and overlapping, and to set out clearly the respective areas of responsibility of each of these two important elements in the United Nations machinery for narcotics and drug abuse control.
First of all, the Fund. After two years of a "breaking-in" period, the Fund has now established itself as an important continuing instrument
in the field of drug abuse control. It has attracted considerable financial support from a significant number of member states who have voluntarily contributed a total of $4.5 million to date to its work.
The
GE.73-2039