Naif Arab University for Security Sciences (NAUSS) will soon launch a Chair to study and combat the menace of drug abuse in Saudi Arabia, Ali Abdullah Al-Jurais, Chairman of the National Association for Drug Prevention (NADP), told a press conference here, Monday. As part of the national campaign against drug abuse in the Kingdom, the university will establish the research Chair in six months, Al-Jurais said. However, the use of narcotics in the Kingdom is not a serious problem as only a relatively small number of people between the ages of 25 and 40 have been found to be addicted, Al-Jurais said. “The problem of drug abuse is comparatively small in Saudi Arabia. However, efforts are being exerted to combat the use of narcotics and nip the problem in the bud,” Al-Jurais said. Since NADP was established five years ago, he said, several measures have been undertaken to create public awareness about the perils of drug abuse. He said NAUSS has agreed to set up a research chair aimed at studying the habits of drug addicts and of how to bring addicts into the mainstream after a rehabilitation program. He said a ‘Halfway House' will be established to house drug addicts after their treatment at Al-Amal hospitals in the Kingdom. The facility will act as a rehabilitation center for addicts who have been treated in the hospital but are not yet fully recovered. So far Al-Amal hospitals have treated 72,000 drug addicts. Al-Jurais said the basic aim of the ‘Halfway House' will be to ensure that once the drug addicts have received treatment at Al-Amal hospitals, they do not start using narcotics again. Jurais said a meeting of NADP officials from across the Kingdom was held at Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry to discuss the year's activities and chalk out future plans for the control of narcotics and the fight against drug abuse in the Kingdom. He said a survey showed that a small number of students both at school and university level were becoming victims of drug abuse. “However, the problem is not that big and the Saudi authorities are using all possible means to prevent this social menace from spreading further in society,” Al
