KUWAIT CITY, 23 April 2007 — The Mentor Foundation, an international group focused on preventing drug abuse among youth, yesterday announced the launch of a regional branch for the Arab world which has become a target for traffickers.
The launch of Mentor Arabia was announced at a press conference attended by Queen Silvia of Sweden, president of the foundation, and Prince Turki ibn Talal, chairman of Mentor Arabia.
“Today, the Arab region has become a final destination for drugs and is no longer a passage. The Arab world is targeted by drug traffickers mainly because of political developments in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Prince Turki said.
Mentor Arabia will sign a number of Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with Kuwaiti sponsors and civil society organizations at a fund-raising event today.
The MOUs will enable Mentor Arabia to launch pilot programs in Kuwait over the next few months before expanding them to other Arab countries, Prince Turki said. He said that based on unofficial figures, the Arab world has between 500,000 and 700,000 drug addicts, and hoped for more cooperation from Arab governments to combat drug abuse.
Mentor Arabia’s programs will mainly focus on raising awareness of drug abuse and prevention. “Drugs is a global problem and we have to deal with it globally,” Queen Silvia said, adding that the Mentor Foundation has reached out to one million children since its establishment in 1993.
