NDLEA Seeks Integrated Approach to Tackle Drug Abuse, Mental Health

OnyebuchiEzigbo in Abuja

National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said it was committed to an integrated approach to dealing with challenges of substance use and mental health in the country. This involved supporting private sector organisations to tackle health challenges resulting from substance use.

The move came just as the agency said Nigeria had witnessed a sudden rise in substance use cutting across all segments of the population, including women.

Director-General of NDLEA, Brigadier General BubaMarwa (rtd), disclosed the position at the official launch of Olive Prime Adventurine, Abuja.

Marwa said there was a need to assist women battling with drug related health challenges.

He lamented that many women involved in drugs were facing stigma, gender-based violence and discrimination, trauma, threat of social exclusion, and fears of family separations, saying they need gender responsive services.

Deputy Director at the Drug Demand Reduction Department of NDLEA, Muhammed Bashir Ibrahim, who represented the director-general, said the opening of the first only woman mental health and substance use rehabilitation centre in Nigeria was a significant milestone.

According to Marwa, the centre is unique in the sense that it is established to address the dual challenge of mental health and substance use disorder, particularly among the female folk.

He stated, “In recent years, Nigeria has witnessed a sudden rise in substance use cutting across all segments of our population including women.

“As chairman of NDLEA, I have witnessed first-hand the silence and often the invisible struggles of women battling drug addiction many of them are victims of stigma gender-based violence and discrimination, trauma, social exclusion, fears of family separation and lack of gender responsive services.”

Marwa also said setting up the rehabilitation centre had sent a strong message that the challenges and needs of women suffering from substance use disorder and mental health will no longer be overlooked.

He commended the vision and commitment of the management of OlivePrimeAdventurine for providing a gender sensitive and professionally guided facility, where women could recover and reclaim their lives with dignity.

Marwa assured that NDLEA was fully committed to an integrated approach to drug control, encompassing prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and integration.

Speaking on the mission and objective of the centre, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Olive Prime Adventurine, Dr. Vincent Udenze, said the establishment of the facility was borne out of a desire to provide a specialist care for women facing mental health challenges resulting from depression and substance use.

Udenze said, “We thought that it would be appropriate to test-run having a centre that is meant for just women.

“This centre will not only provide clinical services but will also serve as a symbol of hope and possibility, showing that recovery is real and that transformation is possible”.

Udenze described the initiative as a bold effort to fill a long-standing gap in our healthcare and social support systems.

According to Udenze, the name of the centre, Olive Prime Adventurine, connotes resilience, new beginnings, and emotional clarity.

Regarding the services being offered by the centre, he explained the centre was modelled as an in-patient facility that people will be admitted for treatment for any form of mental illness, substance addiction and other associated health issues.

Udenze said, “This centre will be what we refer to as a ‘Mother and Baby Unit’. Some women at the time of delivery may experience depression or even psychosis and when they become unwell in that condition, they will need admission. In this facility, we have a place to accommodate the mother, baby and a nanny.”