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were held, involving the community through carnivals, variety shows, competitions and exhibitions.
The Narcotics Division's school talk team gave 330 drug education talks to 85 369 students in 236 primary and secondary schools and technical institutes. A new talk was launched in September, aimed at increasing its effectiveness and integrating it more fully into the work of schools. Talks were also organised for members of youth organisations, parents, and juvenile offenders at the boys' and girls' homes operated by the Social Welfare Department.
To better equip prospective teachers, in-service teachers and social workers to cope with the issue of drug abuse, drug education workshops and courses were organised for students of the Hong Kong Institute of Education and in-service teachers, and a territory-wide seminar was held for social workers. In support of the annual International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, a large-scale exhibition and a radio show disseminating anti-drug messages were held in Tsim Sha Tsui in June. Six more similar radio shows were held during the year, reaching out to about 1.5 million young people. The anti-drug message 'Say NO to Drugs' was applied as a postmark on all mail for two weeks in June.
The Community Against Drugs Scheme continued to provide encouragement and grants of up to $6,000 to interest groups to plan and implement their own anti- drug education and publicity projects. The 70-member ACAN Youth Volunteer Group took part in district campaigns and organised several community involvement - projects. The ACAN Drug Abuse Telephone Enquiry Service provided information on 12 types of commonly abused substances. Information on treatment facilities was also available. In all, 72 772 calls were received during the year. An anti-drug theme song performed by movie star Jackie Chan was produced during the year and used in various publicity events.
Research
Drug-related research supplements data collected from the Central Registry of Drug Abuse to give a better portrait of the drug scene. Since 1993, it has been co- ordinated by the ACAN Sub-committee on Research, which recommends specific areas for research, advises on research methodology and proposes action in the light of research findings. Seven projects were identified by the sub-committee for implementation in 1995, of which five were funded by ACĂN for conduct by outside researchers.
After a comprehensive review in 1994, a new record sheet for completion by reporting agencies such as the Police, Correctional Services Department, treatment agencies and social welfare agencies, was adopted in January 1995. The new system became fully operational at the end of the year.
International Action
Hong Kong continued to play an active international role, maintaining close links with the United Nations, individual governments and inter-governmental agencies such as the Financial Action Task Force, Interpol and the World Customs Organisation. The territory took part in 23 international meetings and seminars concerned with anti-drug policies, law enforcement, treatment and rehabilitation, and preventive education.