1.1 National drugs strategies
1.1.1 Summary of national drug strategy document
The main focus of Slovenia's drug policy is to ensure a comprehensive, balanced and ongoing development of all measures, programs and activities that address and help tackle the problem of illicit drugs in the country. Since the drug problem is addressed using a distinctly intersectoral and multidisciplinary approach, various measures and activities cover different areas, from stemming the supply of illicit drugs to prevention, treatment and social rehabilitation. The first National programme on illicit drugs was launched as early as 1992 and marked the beginning of a comprehensive effort to tackle the country's illicit drug problem.
In 1999 and 2000, Slovenia passed two fundamental laws governing the area of illicit drugs, namely:
the Act Regulating the Prevention of the Use of Illicit Drugs and on the Treatment of Drug Users (Official Gazette of the RS, Nos. 98/8 and 2/04 – ZPNNVSM; ZPUPD) and the Production of and Trade in Illicit Drugs Act (Official Gazette of the RS, Nos. 108/99, 44/00, 2/04 - ZZdrl-A, 47/o4 – ZdZPZ; ZPPPD).
The ZPUPD, in effect, lays down measures and activities aiming to help reduce the demand for illicit drugs. The measures and activities include various information campaigns and prevention programs, healthcare and social activities, harm reduction programs and activities associated with monitoring and analysing the issue of drug use. The Act also laid down the organizational structure and funding for the treatment of drug addicts.
In practice, the ZPPPD aims to curb the supply of illicit drugs. The Act sets out conditions allowing the production of and trading in illicit drugs and the possession of illicit drugs, as well as sanctions for those who violate the provisions of the law.
The overarching goal of the Resolution on the National Programme on Illicit Drugs 2014–2020 currently in force, is to reduce and contain the harm that illicit drug use may cause to individuals, their families, and society. Covering the period from 2014 to 2020, the Resolution on the National Programme on Illicit Drugs is composed of two parts, the National Strategy and Action Plan. The National Strategy lays down areas of activity, development trends and implementation mechanisms. It was passed by the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia in April 2014 (available at:
http://www.pisrs.si/Pis.web/pregledPredpisa?id=DRUG3915).
The new National Programme on Illicit Drugs has been developed based on the needs identified across the relevant sectors, results of assessing the implementation of the previous strategy, latest research and the existing legislation in this area. It forms a strategic framework for the state's uniform, comprehensive and balanced approach to addressing the issue of drugs. The overarching goal of the National Programme on Illicit Drugs 2014–2020 is to reduce and contain the harm that illicit drug use causes to individuals, their families, and society. Of all the goals and missions, the following should be pointed out:
− Seeking to promote illicit drug use prevention programs in order to reduce the number of new drug users among the younger generation and to reduce the number of minor and criminal offences involving illicit drugs.
− Seeking to support the development of programs to help stabilize or reduce the number of people infected with HIV, HBV and HCV, and deaths due to overdose.
− Seeking to develop and upgrade all coordinating structures working in the area of drugs at the local and national levels.
All the goals and activities described above help achieve broader social objectives, such as efforts to combat organized crime, illicit drug trade, money laundering and other forms of drug-related crime.
At the operational level, the strategy is being implemented through two-year action plans with detailed priorities, implementation providers and timeline. At the same time, the action plan is a well-structured instrument that allows in-depth implementation monitoring and making ongoing adjustments to activities in response to pending issues and needs relating to drugs. The first action plan was passed by the Government of the Republic of Slovenia in April 2015 (available at:
http://www.mz.gov.si/fileadmin/mz.gov.si/pageuploads/javna_razprava_2015/AKCIJSKI_NACRT_za_d roge_jan_2015.pdf). This document contains numerous measures from all relevant subject matters that are designed to strengthen cooperation in countering harmful effects of drug use and reducing drug-related crime. The action plan faithfully reflects the structure and goals of the strategy and focuses on tangible results obtained in the context of the goals and missions described above.
The Ministry of Health is responsible for shaping the legislation and policy and for policy implementation coordination in the area of illicit drugs in Slovenia. The illicit drug legislation and policy remain limited to illicit substances despite past discussions about the possibilities of shaping a so-called Coherent Policy, which would cover the various forms of addiction in general or at least include alcohol and tobacco in addition to illicit drugs. Its implementation was hampered, however, by the legal distinction between individual areas, with each individual policy requiring a separate legal basis.
The area of illicit drugs is also covered by the Resolution on the National Crime Prevention and Control Programme for the 2012–2016 period. Content specifically addressing illicit drugs can be found in the following chapters: 6.5.4.2 Strategy/Programme – Reducing the number of users of all illicit drugs, and 6.5.4.3 Strategy/Programme – Provision and strengthening of universal, selective and indicated preventive actions for preventing the use of drugs and reducing drug-related criminal activity.
1.2 Evaluation of national drugs strategies
1.2.2 Results of the latest evaluation
The new Resolution on the National Programme on Illicit Drugs 2014–2020 also takes into account reports on the implementation of the previous Resolution on the National Programme on Illicit Drugs prepared by all the competent ministerial sectors, as well as all relevant epidemiological and criminological data. The Ministry of Health commissioned the Faculty of Social Work, as an independent scientific institution, to carry out an assessment of the implementation of the Resolution on the National Programme on Illicit Drugs. Additionally, the Ministry of Health commissioned the Association of Non-governmental Organisations Working in the Area of Drugs to conduct an analysis to ascertain NGO's positions on the previous Resolution and, above all, expectations regarding the new document. The main findings and recommendations of the assessment and analysis are given below.
A closer look into the implementation of the previous Resolution (ReNPPD) revealed a number of weaknesses. There is too little interaction and communication among ministerial sectors and vertically between ministries on the one hand and program providers and users on the other, which causes problems in implementing projects, particularly cross-sectoral ones. Also, collaboration among ministries should be strengthened in introducing changes into legislation, for example the Act Regulating the Prevention of the Use of Illicit Drugs and on the Treatment of Drug Users. Collaboration among ministries is also needed at the local community level and in addiction research. And what's more, collaboration is critical to the planning and steering of specific programs. Also identified at the national and local levels was a lack of up-to-date information and insufficient exchange of information about the prevalence of the drug issue in all its many forms and shapes.
According to program providers, the value of the ReNPPD resolution as a document was first and foremost rhetorical, in the sense that it was used as a reference, while the action plan was the one expected to have an applicable value. The Resolution has spurred the creation of new programs, but these were often left to fend for themselves and faced with staffing and financial problems. Program providers would have liked to see discussion and arrangements at the level of competent ministries, a higher degree of engagement in laying down substantive criteria with regard to work quality and a deeper level of commitment to support the programs. They also would have liked to see a single coordinating body or at least prominent counterparts at the competent ministries who are responsible for public relations with the professional community and the general public. Program providers further note that program funding is still not balanced and that criteria for assessing the programs' quality and performance are vague. According to users, drug-related services are quite easily accessible, yet some of the programs envisaged in the ReNPPD, such as safe injection rooms and needle dispensing machines, failed to achieve their potential, and programs in smaller communities are underdeveloped.
At the moment, we do not have an evaluation plan for the current national strategy. We are planning to execute this evaluation near the end of the validity of the strategy.
1.3 Drug policy coordination
1.3.1 Coordination bodies involved in drug policy
The country's highest-level coordinating body in the area of illicit drugs is the Commission on Narcotic Drugs of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia, an interdepartmental authority that meets at least three times a year. The Commission is made up of representatives from nine ministries (Ministry of the Interior; Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities; Justice; Defence; Education; Foreign Affairs; Agriculture; Finance; Health) and two representatives from two NGO Associations.
Representatives from several other organizations may sit on the Commission: the Coordination of Centres for the Prevention and Treatment of Drug Addiction, the Prison Administration, Police, and the National Institute of Public Health.
The Ministry of Health, which is the Commission’s Secretariat, and the Ministry of Interior are responsible for, respectively, the strategic and operational coordination of the programme, in the areas of drug demand and supply reduction.
Under the Act Regulating the Prevention of the Use of Illicit Drugs and on the Treatment of Drug Users, the Commission on Narcotic Drugs of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia promotes and coordinates the government policy, measures and programs for preventing the use of illicit drugs, reducing the demand for illicit drugs, reducing the harm associated with using illicit drugs, and for providing treatment and rehabilitation.
The Commission on Narcotic Drugs of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia also performs the following tasks:
− monitors the enforcement of provisions under conventions adopted by international authorities and international organizations;
− submits to the Government of the Republic of Slovenia a proposal for the national programme and measures for implementing the national programme;
− proposes measures for reducing the supply of illicit drugs;
− fosters international collaboration.
Among other things, the Commission reviews national annual reports on the drug situation in the country along with all other current topics related to illicit drugs, including any legislative proposals and initiatives.
The Ministry of Health administers to the operational needs of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs by
drawing up documentation and materials for meetings and by making sure, together with other competent ministerial sectors and institutions, that all resolutions passed by the Commission's sessions are implemented.
The Commission on Narcotic Drugs of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia and the Ministry of Health are responsible for coordinating activities in the area of illicit drugs at the government level. Within the Ministry of Health, the Health Promotion and Healthy Lifestyles Division is responsible for the day-to-day coordination of drug policy. At the local level, Local Action Groups (LAGs) continue to be the key coordinators of activities in local communities.
1.4 Drug related public expenditure
1.4.1 Data on drug-related expenditure
Most operations against illicit drugs in Slovenia are financed from the state budget and the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia. Additionally, the funds are acquired from various foundations and are contributed also by Slovenian municipalities that help to acquire appropriate premises for programmes.
In 2016 the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities allocated EUR 3,106,617.00 to programmes pertaining to the issues of illicit drugs, of which EUR 2,074,217.20 was allocated for high-threshold and EUR 1,032,400.00 for low-threshold programmes. The Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities was the main co-financer of those programmes.
The remaining funds were acquired from other sources such as local communities (municipalities), the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia, memberships and contributions by users, the Foundation for Funding Disability and Humanitarian Organisations and others.
The Ministry of Health provided EUR 85,000.00 in 2016 for resolving drug-related issues.
The Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia allocated EUR 4,845,000.00 in 2016 to the operation of Centres for the Prevention and Treatment of Drug Addiction and for medications as well as other material costs in connection to substitution treatment of addictions (substitute drugs). An additional EUR 150,000.00 was contributed by the Health Insurance Institute for the purchase of material for safe drug injection, which was distributed to harm reduction programmes by the Koper Regional Office of the National Institute of Public Health.
The Office for Youth of the Republic of Slovenia annually co-finances the programmes of youth work organisations, including those that run prevention activities against various forms of addiction or risk behaviour regarding alcohol, tobacco and drug abuse, yet this prevention does not present the major part of their programme. In 2016, The Office for Youth contributed a total of EUR 44,199.00 to such programmes.
The Foundation for Funding Disability and Humanitarian Organisations allocated EUR 254,483.40 for helping addicts within the scope of various humanitarian organisations in 2016.
Out of all 212 Slovenian municipalities, 115 responded to the call for submitting a report on co-funding programmes pertaining to illicit drugs. These local communities spent a total of EUR 1,053,687.99 on solving drug-related issues in 2016.
In 2016, the Slovenian Police police spent a total of EUR 824,184.79 on combating illicit drugs.
Drawing from available data, an estimated sum of EUR 10,363,172.18 was allocated to the issue of illicit drugs in Slovenia in 2016.
The report only includes available reports on the funding of various programmes in connection to illicit drugs. The reports by some of the fund providers make it appear that various organisations and projects
are funded as a whole, which makes it difficult to ascertain what share of the funds was spent on the implementation on the programme as a whole and how much was actually spent on drug-related issues alone.
1.4.2 Break-down of drug related expenditure Table 1. Break-down of drug related public expenditure.
Expenditure (€) Year COFOG classification National accounting classification
2016 Public order and safety Unlabelled