New drug prevention program targets Nunavut youth

A new federally-supported drug prevention project plans to reach youth in Grades 7, 8 and 9 in aboriginal and “vulnerable” communities in Nunavut, Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Ottawa announced Dec. 9.

This project, targeting 39 students in 39 schools, aims to empower youth and will increase students’ capacity to avoid illicit drugs, said Shelly Glover, MP for Saint Boniface, speaking on behalf of federal health minister and Nunavut MP Leona Aglukkaq.

“The Government of Canada is proud to be working with the Council on Drug Abuse to help prevent illicit drug use among aboriginal and vulnerable youth in our Northern and Prairie regions,” said Glover in a Dec. 9 news release. “This prevention program helps youth make healthy decisions through a better understanding of the harmful effects of drug abuse.”

For the five-year project,” Drug Abuse Prevention Program for Aboriginal and Vulnerable Youth in Northern and Prairie School Communities,” the Council on Drug Abuse received $1 million from the $50-million Drug Strategy Community Initiatives Fund.

Other partners in this project include: the Canadian Association for School Health, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and the Department of Education of the Government of Nunavut, the National Native Addictions Partnership Foundation.

“This is an exciting opportunity to engage youth and empower them to make stronger, healthier and wiser decisions,” said Lesley Whyte, executive director of the Council On Drug Abuse.