DUSHANBE, May 15, 2009, Asia-Plus -- Within the framework of the anti-drug action entitled “DCA – 10 Years of Fight Against Narcotics,” officers from the Drug Control Agency (DCA) held meetings with students from Tajik State Teachers’ Training University and Tajik Technical University in Dushanbe yesterday, according to the DCA press service.

During the meetings, it was noted that according to data of the Ministry of Health 8,645 drug-dependent people were registered with the narcology dispensary last year, which was 0.9 percent more than in 2007.

Of them, 79.3 percent are heroin-dependent people; last year, the heroin-dependent people constituted 82.22 percent of drug-dependent people in the country.  Hashish users last year constituted 6.7 percent of drug-dependent people and opium user constituted 8.6 percent.  Poly-drug addicts constituted 5.4 percent of drug-dependent people in Tajikistan last year.             

The number of drug addicts aged 18 to 30 last year increased by 1 percent and this age category now constitutes 29 percent of drug-dependent people in the country.