Drug demand reduction programmes for young people in Hong Kong.

A wide range of drug demand reduction programmes are being carried out in Hong Kong. These include community involvement projects; preventive drug education and publicity through the use of mass media in the form of television and radio announcements and posters; and the production of educational and publicity materials. Most of these programmes are intended to reach young people. The local district campaigns are held every year to arouse awareness of the dangers of drug abuse and to encourage public support in combating such abuse. A selected volunteer group encourages young people to participate in the planning, organization and implementation of drug-abuse prevention projects. A programme called "Youth against drugs scheme", which was launched in 1981, is open to all youth groups, providing an opportunity for young people to plan and implement anti-narcotics publicity projects in their own way with limited supervision. These programmes have proved successful in involving the young in the fight against drug abuse and associated problems.