The National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse CEO Victor Okioma wants more public rehabilitation facilities opened.
The CEO has noted that 90 per cent of the alcohol and drug abuse rehabilitation facilities in the country are owned by individuals or faith-based organisations.
He noted that having more publicly owned facilities will make them cheaper ensuring access by more Kenyans.
“There are not enough rehabilitation facilities. As an authority we regulate, inspect and licence them and I can tell you every time we have had applications of about 150 when we inspect those that qualify to operate are sometimes 70 or so,” Okioma said.
According to Okioma, the focus should not just be in investing in more rehabilitation facilities but ensuring they offer a comprehensive package of treatment, rehabilitation and reintegration.
“Re-integration means once you have stabilised if you had a mental health disorder and you were formally a teacher, how do we help this person to regain his lost job and if you were self-employed how do we assist you to access your self-employment,” Okioma said.
Nacada has been working with the Kenya Bureau of Standards to formulate standards to be used in the management of drug addiction in the country.
Among others, the standards will ensure that affected persons have access to quality support services for their eventual psycho-social development and reintegration.
This comes as the authority raised concern over a steady increase in the number of persons using drugs.
This has led to an increase in the number of persons requiring treatment, care and support.
The agency has been at the forefront in coordinating the country’s multi-sectoral response to the challenge of alcohol and drug abuse and has designed programmes to promote healthy lifestyles.
A National Survey conducted by Nacada in 2017 found that alcohol is the most abused substance with 12.2 per cent of persons aged 15 to 65 being active users of alcohol.
This is followed by Tobacco with a prevalence rate of 8.3 per cent, miraa at 4.1 per cent and Cannabis at one per cent.
