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OAS/CICAD publishes Thematic National Evaluation Reports 2023 of the Eighth Round of the Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism

The Executive Secretariat of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD, by its Spanish-language acronym) of the Organization of American States (OAS) releases today the thematic national evaluation reports of the Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism (MEM) 2023 on the drug-related areas of Institutional Strengthening; Research, Information, Monitoring, and Evaluation; and International Cooperation.

The 32 national reports were approved at CICAD’s seventy-fourth regular session, held December 11-14, 2023, under the Chair of Uruguay, and Vice Chair of Antigua and Barbuda.

The reports address issues on the mentioned drug-related areas, such as:

• Establishment and strengthening of national drug authorities
• Formulation and updating of national drug policies and/or strategies
• Collaborative relationships with the scientific community, public policy experts, community and civil society actors, and other relevant stakeholders, to contribute to the evidence-based national drug policies
• Adoption of alternative measures to incarceration for minor or non-violent drug-related offenses
• Promotion of proportional legal sentencing for minor drug-related offenses, in accordance with domestic law
• Establishment and strengthening national observatories on drugs, strengthening national drug information systems, and foster scientific research
• Promotion and strengthening of cooperation and coordination mechanisms to foster technical assistance, improve exchange of information and experiences, and share best practices and lessons learned on drug policies
• Strengthening of international cooperation, as defined in the international legal instruments related to the world drug problem

The MEM, mandated by the 1998 Summit of the Americas, is a peer review process that measures the progress of actions taken by OAS member states to address the problem of drugs and related crimes. The MEM process, managed by OAS/CICAD, evaluates member states’ adherence to the Hemispheric Plan of Action on Drugs (POA) 2021-2025, which serves as a guide for the implementation of the Hemispheric Drug Strategy 2020.

As the only multilateral evaluation of its kind in the world, the MEM’s national reports highlight the strengths and challenges in the formulation and implementation of OAS member states’ drug policies, encouraging national dialogue among policymakers. The eighth round consists of three annual evaluations covering the following POA thematic areas: Measures of Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Support, in 2021; Measures to Control and Counter the Illicit Cultivation, Production, Trafficking, and Distribution of Drugs, and to Address their Causes and Consequences, in 2022; and Institutional Strengthening/Research, Information, Monitoring, and Evaluation/International Cooperation, in 2023. Additionally, the MEM annual hemispheric briefs (one per thematic evaluation) are informative papers focusing on trends and collective progress. Finally, in 2024, the MEM will carry out a comprehensive evaluation to update the information presented in the first three years.

All MEM reports can be accessed through the following link: https://www.oas.org/ext/en/security/mem/type/1?category=12

Reference: E-088/23