VietNamNet Bridge – Around 35 per cent of the country's nearly 400,000 drug users have kicked the habit thanks to the family and community-based detoxification model used nationwide over the past 10 years.

The figures were announced at a conference held in Ha Noi yesterday to review 10 years in the fight against AIDS, drugs and prostitution.

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Vinh Trong said the numbers represented "remarkable results". He attributed the success to the efforts of health workers, as well as officials in the public security, labour, war veterans and social affairs sectors and the entire political system.

"The Party and Government have always seen the prevention of AIDS, drugs and prostitution as key activities. The entire political system and society need to be mobilised to control, prevent and systematically tackle these social problems," said Trong.

More than 350,000 people have received treatment for drug addition at detoxification centres in Viet Nam in the last decade. About 113,000 of these, or 32 per cent, have since been offered employment.

At the same time, the area under opium cultivation saw dramatic reductions: 428 hectares in 2000 became around 30 hectares in 2009.

The country has also been successful in detecting a large number of criminals involved in the drug trade.

According to statistics of the National Committee for HIV/AIDS, Drugs and Prostitution Prevention, authorities have pursued 122,500 cases with nearly 200,000 drug criminals involved. They have seized close to 1,900kg heroin, 2,500kg opium, 15,000kg marijuana and 800,000 narcotics pills.

However, the conference also heard that 90 per cent of districts and towns were still home to drug users, as were over 56 per cent of communes and wards nation-wide.

The percentage of drug addicts aged under 30 has increased from 57.7 per cent of the total in 2001 to 68.3 per cent in 2009. Use of intravenous drugs has also increased, from 46.4 per cent of total drug use in 2001 to 85 per cent in 2009.

There were nearly 14,000 cases of prostitution and 47,500 people arrested for this crime during the 10-year period.

As of September 2010, the nation had more than 180,000 people living with HIV, of which more than 42,000 had full-blown AIDS. Over 48,000 had died of the disease.

Present at yesterday's event was Politburo member and permanent member of the Secretariat of the Party Central Committee Truong Tan Sang. He used the opportunity to urge ministries and relevant Government sectors at all levels to speed up the fight against AIDS, drugs and prostitution, saying this was a core task for the Government in the future.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News