This report aims to improve the understanding of the world’s drug problem and to contribute towards fostering greater international cooperation for countering its impact on health, governance and security. It includes an updated overview of recent trends on production, trafficking and consumption for non-medical purposes of key controlled substances. It maintains a global overview of the baseline data and estimates on drug demand and supply and provides an analysis of the market for the different drugs. Comprised of six booklets, it reviews persistent challenges and emerging threats in drug markets; offers an analysis of socioeconomic inequalities and drug use disorders; and addresses other drug policy issues such as access to controlled medicines and alternative development. It also discusses the impact of COVID-19 (coronavirus) on drug markets, stating that the impact could be like the 2008 economic crisis.

The World Drug Report 2016, which provides a comprehensive overview of major developments in drug markets, trafficking routes and the health impact of drug use, supports comprehensive, balanced and integrated rights-based approaches. This year’s report offers insight into the wide-ranging impact of drugs not only on the health and well-being of individuals, but also on the people around them — families and communities. This can include such harms as HIV, as well as the threat of violence, faced in particular by women and children. It looks at issues of gender, marginalization, stigmatization, violence and human rights, and considers how counter-narcotics strategies can be sensitive to environmental concerns such as deforestation and pollution. It examines the use of the “dark net” and new technologies for drug trafficking, as well as the potential of illicit drug profits to fund terrorism and violent extremism. This report, as ith all of the Office’s expertise and on-the-ground experience in addressing the many aspects of the world drug problem, is at the disposal of Member States as they strive to meet this call to action.

The World Drug Report provides an annual overview of the major developments in drug markets for the various drug categories, ranging from production to trafficking, including development of new routes and modalities, as well as consumption. Chapter 1 of the World Drug Report 2014 provides a global overview of the latest developments with respect to opiates, cocaine, cannabis and amphetamines (including “ecstasy”) and the health impact of drug use. Chapter 2 zeroes in on the control of precursor chemicals used in the manufacture of illicit drugs.

Chapter I of this year's World Drug Report provides an overview of recent trends and the state of drug production, trafficking, and consumption, and its consequences in terms of treatment and related illnesses and deaths to drugs. Chapter II presents from a diachronic point of view the characteristics of the drug problem, its evolution and the main factors that determine it. It starts with an examination of the main features of the current problem, followed by a presentation of the changes observed in recent decades, and concludes with an analysis of the factors that have influenced its evolution and a brief overview of likely future trends.