Prishtinë, 13 December 2019 –The Ombudsperson, in the course of exercising his legal powers and responsibilities, published today Ex-officio Report with Recommendations no. 489/2018, concerning the use of narcotic substances by children.

The case has been Ex-officio initiated with the aim of assessing the present situation regarding the use of narcotic substances by children in Kosovo and addressing recommendations to the relevant institutions in order that all necessary measures are taken in prevention and treatment of children addicted to narcotic substances.

The Ombudsperson, upon reviewing relevant legislation, international instruments, information obtained from various institutions and NGOs as well as information on his disposal, estimates that drug using by children has reached a serious level, adding to this the fact that from year to year we have younger drug users, even those being solely 10 years old.  Furthermore, in this Report the Ombudsperson ascertains that there are no specialized centers for treatment of youth addicted to drugs, lack of appropriate prevention and awareness rising programs as well as the lack of treatment and services of drug users as per the quality in the whole country.

Further, the Ombudsperson finds that there is a lack of expertise among the staff of the Centers for Social Work to cope with cases of children using narcotics within their legal mandate.

At the same time this Report provides specific and appropriate recommendations regarding actions that should be taken by the Ministry of Health, Kosovo Police, Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare, Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Kosovo Judicial Council and Kosovo Prosecutorial Council in terms of improving the current situation.

This Recommendations Report has been delivered to responsible authorities. The same has been disseminated to media and published on the official website of the Ombudsperson Institution.