Interagency Youth Working Group

Throughout the Middle East, North Africa, Asia, and Latin America, injecting drug use is a significant source of HIV infection among youth. Yet most drug treatment services cater to adults or addicts, and the needs of young injecting-drug users (IDUs)—especially those in the early stages of injecting or those who do not consider themselves addicts—are often overlooked.

Most IDUs start the practice when they are young. Motivations for first injection are similar across cultures. Curiosity, peer pressure, and availability are key factors. First injections rarely occur alone; they usually take place in a social situation, with a young person injected by a friend, relative, or sexual partner. Many young IDUs are involved in the sex industry and report multiple sexual partners and unprotected sex. Young people who inject drugs are often unaware of risks associated with their behavior, including the severity of health problems they may encounter. Since drug use is illegal and often stigmatized, young IDUs tend to avoid mainstream society, and vice versa.

Programs to help these vulnerable youth focus on:

• Preventing HIV by discouraging young people from initiating injecting drug use
• Reducing risks of HIV associated with injecting drug use (i.e., "harm reduction")

A YouthLens research brief from the Interagency Youth Working Group summarizes this topic, Youth and Injecting Drug Users: YouthLens No. 26 (PDF, 160 KB). Other key recommended resources are below.

Recommended Resources

Case Studies

Another Way to Learn: Case Studies. This 2007 collection from UNESCO presents alternative educational programs that can help participants attain sustainable livelihoods and reduce vulnerability. Several case studies offer programs for young IDUs.  

Curbing HIV in Drug-Driven Epidemics. This 2007 PowerPoint presentation by Rob Gray of Population Services International (PSI) provides details about PSI’s Break the Cycle program for young IDUs, as well as general information about the topic.

Youth Centers in Central Asia Empower Youth, Prevent Drug Use and HIV Infection
This 2004 USAID success story talks about Population Services International/Open Society International youth centers offering information, education, and activities to help young people make healthy choices about sex and drug use.

Tools

HIV Prevention among Young Injecting Drug Users. This 2004 handbook from the Global Youth Network and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) provides an excellent overview of the special needs of young IDUs and on programs that have worked.

Web Sites

International Harm Reduction Association. This is the Web site of the International Harm Reduction Association, which includes a publications search feature that allows users to access documents on injecting drug use. Although not directly related to young IDU, a particularly interesting publication found on this site is a paper by Neil Hunt, A review of the evidence-base for harm reduction approaches to drug use.

Youth and Drugs. This Web page features information from the UNODC’s Global Youth Network about youth and drugs.

Reports and Briefs

Principles of Drug Dependence Treatment. Produced by the UNODC and the World Health Organization, this 2008 discussion paper encourages governments to implement evidence-informed approaches to addressing drug dependence.