Over the years, decline in academic performance and class repetition have been cited as indicators of d**g a***e among primary school students in Kenya with stakeholders including parents calling for the scaling up of the w*r on d***s to prevent the future generation from being sucked into the trapping world of d**g a***e.
Well their worst fears have been confirmed by a report jointly drafted by the National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and D**g A***e (NACADA) and the Kenya Institute of Public Policy and Research (KIPPRA)Â which reveals that primary schools are a hotbed of d**g a***e while children as young as 4 years old are being exposed to d***s.
NACADA’s report dubbed Status of D***s and Substance A***e among Primary School Pupils in Kenya which sampled responses from 3,307 primary school students from 177 randomly selected primary schools in 25 representative counties across the country reveals worrying details that paint a picture of a young generation that needs to be protected from d**g dealers taking advantage of a gullible population to make a k*****g.
The report shows at least 16.9% of primary school pupils are currently using at least one d**g or substance of a***e, 7.2% are currently using prescription d***s and 3.2% are currently using t*****o.
It also reveals that 2.6% of Kenyan pupils are currently using alcohol, 2.3% are currently using miraa/muguka, 1.2% are currently using inhalants and 1.2% are currently using h****n.
What’s more, the report reveals that t*****o 41.9%, prescription d***s 27.8%, alcohol 25.9% and miraa/muguka 23.1% are the d***s and substances of a***e reported to be most readily available to primary school pupils.
“Overall, the survey shows that pupils are fairly knowledgeable on the different d***s and substances of a***e. T*****o, alcohol and bhang/c******s were the most widely known d***s with a prevalence of 89.3%, 83.8% and 77.8%, respectively,” reads part of the report.
{Read: H******e d***s business on the rise in Kenya}
Further ,when asked if they were aware that their school mates and friends a***e d***s and substances, the interviewees replied in the affirmative saying that their colleagues are currently using t*****o 16.0%, prescription d***s 13.8%, miraa/muguka 10.6% and alcohol 9.6%.
Conversely, it has also been revealed that the pupils use d***s and substances during school holidays 30.0%, on their way home from school 22.0%, during weekends 21.0% and during inter-school competitions 20.0%.
{See also: Prevalence of counterfeit d***s to affect Big 4 delivery}
The most commonly mentioned sources of d***s and substances of a***e include kiosks or shops near school 28.6%, bars near school 25.7%, friends 19.3%, bought from other pupils 13.7% and school workers 13.6%.
