Last September witnessed the publication of a groundbreaking new discussion paper from the UN Development Programme launched at the UN General Assembly in New York: 'Development Dimensions of Drug Policy: Assessing New Challenges, Uncovering Opportunities, and Addressing Emerging Issues'.

This is the first ever UN discussion paper to explore the implications of drug policy and law reform on the sustainable development goals, specifically including ongoing trends towards legal regulation of some currently prohibited drugs. The paper covers a range of themes, including potential impacts (both positive and negative) of drug legalisation/regulation on sustainable livelihoods, governance, public health, human rights, and the environment. Transform’s senior policy analyst Steve Rolles worked as consultant and lead drafter on the report with an extended peer review group of academic, civil society and UN experts.

We are serialising key sections of the paper on the Transform blog in the coming weeks, beginning with the scene setting introduction that you can read here.

Some details of the launch events in New York, Vienna and Geneva are below:


New York

The New York launch event was hosted by UNDP on the margins of the UN General Assembly taking place that week. Speakers:

​​Mandeep Dhaliwal (moderator), Director, HIV and Health Group, Bureau of Policy and Programme Support
Marcos Neto, Assistant Secretary-General, Director, UNDP Bureau for Policy and Programme Support
Ernesto Zedillo, Former President of Mexico, Commissioner, Global Commission on Drug Policy
Binaifer Nowrojee, President of Open Society Foundations
Steve Rolles, Lead Author, Senior Policy Analyst, Transform Drug Policy Foundation

The report was then discussed in a panel dialogue with:

Kassandra Frederique, Executive Director, Drug Policy Alliance
Ambassador Juan José Quintana, Deputy Permanent Representative of the Colombia Mission to the United Nations
Matteo Pasquali, Deputy Representative, UNODC New York
Ninan Varughese, Senior Adviser, UNAIDS New York

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Vienna

The Vienna launch took place as an official side event of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs on March. It was Organised by United Nations Development Programme and cosponsored by Brazil, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Malta, South Africa; Switzerland, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), Open Society Foundations, the International Coalition on Drug Policy Reform & Environmental Justice and Health Poverty Action, and Transform Drug Policy Foundation.

Speakers:

Boyan Konstantinov (moderator), UNDP
Ambassador Marcela Tovar-Thomas, Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations
Steve Rolles, Lead Author, Senior Policy Analyst, Transform Drug Policy Foundation
Jean-Paul Fiott, Chief Officer, Licensing, Authority for the Responsible Use of Cannabis (ARUC), Malta
Secretary Marta Machado, National Secretariat for Drug Policy and Asset Management (SENAD), Brazil
Eugenio Figueroa, International Coalition for Drug Policy Reform & Environmental Justice
Diego Garcia-Devis, Open Society Foundations

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Geneva

The final UN launch event for the paper took place on 16th of March at the 61st Session of the Human Rights Council, in the Palais de Nations in Geneva. Titled ‘Human Rights Implications of Drug Policy: Advancing Rights‑Based, Evidence‑Informed and Development‑Oriented Responses’ the event was organised by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), and was cosponsored by Colombia, Mexico, Portugal, Switzerland, South Africa, the Global Commission on Drug Policy, International Drug Policy Consortium, International Network of People Who Use Drugs, and Transform Drug Policy Foundation.

Luciana Mermet (moderator). Manager, Global Fund Partnership & Health Systems Team

Simon Walker, Chief, Rule of Law & Democracy Section, OHCHR
Ambassador João Mira Gomes, Permanent Representative of Portugal to the United Nations Office in Geneva
Christine Stegling, Assistant Executive Director, UNAIDS
Anton Basenko, Executive Director, International Network of People Who Use Drugs
Vuyesika Dubula, Head of department for Community, Rights & Gender, Global Fund
Ruth Dreifuss, Former president of Switzerland, Commissioner, Global Commission on Drug Policy
Ambassador Gustavo Gallón, Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations in Geneva

We would like to thank the UNDP team, in particular Boyan Konstantinov and Luiza Veado, and Mandeep Dhaliwal, for their invaluable leadership and efforts

We would like to thank the UNDP team, in particular Boyan Konstantinov and Luiza Veado, and Mandeep Dhaliwal, for their invaluable leadership and effortsin preparing the discussion paper and organising the launch events, and Zaved Mamood at OHCHR for supporting the organisation of the Geneva event.