Antonio Lomba Moderator: Good afternoon and welcome, without delay I will welcome Ambassador Bortezi of Italy.

Ambassador Alessandro Cortese: I am delighted to open this side-event, co-sponsored by our government. I thank the organizers for the invite, in particular long standing friends San Patrignano. We take reintegration and rehabilitation of people who use drugs very seriously. We have hundreds of therapeutic communities in Italy ensuring free access to treatment. There are large residential centres giving a new chance to more than 26,000 people, with a success rate over 73%. They are not just a leader in this field, but a real role model and today we all have an invaluable opportunity to learn from these practices and expertise. I personally visited San Patrignano and was very impressed, the clinic deserves a visit not just by experts but by everyone here today and connected to this industry. The most effective way to address drug disorders is to ensure accessible rehabilitation and social reintegration. The gap between society and people with substance use disorders is too wide and stigmatization prevents society from including people completing rehab. Societies mistrust can start viscous cycle and increase relapse. Social and job reintegration is integral part of process. Should be even more evident for all of us after the pandemic, all ofus experienced first hand what is isolation, we now appreciate being social animals as Aristotle wrote. Need for solid relations. Must use this experience as driving force behind overcoming stigma. Reintegration must be a priority for all and collaboration between public and private sector necessary. Being useful to community strengthens attachment to community and social integration can turn vicious cycle into positive cycle of change.

Luis Fernando Lima Oliveira: Secretary committed to strengthening security so we prevent and respond to security threats in order to promote initiatives preventing crime and violence. SICAD evidence based policies reducing crime and securing human rights to positively impact social integration. Importance placed on this for PWUD is highlighted in OAS strategy 2020 and plan of action 2021-2025. Committed to supporting member states and where possible reaching wider community. Implement alternatives to incarceration. Seek to ensure social integration. Programs with respect for culture, gender, age and human rights in their implementation and design. Collaboration can provide opportunity for people in conflict with law. Expertise from two SICAD projects, rehab and treatment centres in Latin America and case care management system. Confident that these will be performative and practical. Discussion on enhancing interinstitutional cooperation on path to social integration. 

Daniel Radio: At the national drug board of Uruguay we have strengthened partnerships between the government and CSO. Offer wide range of opportunities for accessing services. Time and effort invested into design of programs. Over the years we have supported cooperations for ecological production as employment option for PWUD. Age and gender sensitive programs for people in detention using integrated holistic approaches. Strong relationship with stakeholders for community based social integration in field of sport, education, recreation and job training. Since 2020 we have participated in strengthening treatment services in Latin America and the Caribbean. This program sponsored services offered by San Patrignano and cooperation between numerous Latin American and Caribbean countries. Visit to San Partigiano was enlightening and informative. Uruguay welcomes all opportunities to engage in discussion for learning and exchanging best pracices. 

Charlotte Sisson: It is vital people return to the community with new life skills and tools for recovery. Case care management is vital to develop plans for people to go into education, housing and childcare support with the goal of reducing drug use. Several examples of partnerships which are cost effective and evidence based and respond at each stage of the justice system, even before arrest. Quality treatment and recovery support services are critical to the response. Need more input from experts of physiology of addiction as brain disease. We have developed online self guided courses at issup.net learning pharmacology and more. 

Monica Barzanti, San Patrignano: Need to be aware that substance use disorder affects people in all areas, it is not just a medical issue, it is a much wider issue. Need to provide tools to give them possibility to live full life to return to society and contribute. Two main missions, prevention with young people in schools and today a focus on recovery and social reintegration. Reintegration is fundamental to reduce risk of relapse, people need a job to feel useful to society. Majority of clients were unemployed with low levels of education and needed resources to access society because work gives them purpose. Work is a tool that builds identity, professional choice and training pathway central to construction of self. Need to offer this pathway to build self esteem. Provide study centre and vocational training. Collaborate with private sector for internship programe. School and Training Association offers study and training opportunities to offer to clients. Recognized at national level and all certificates given are recognized at EU level. Funded by the European Social Fund. Study centre for access to school, university level courses, also vocational training in baking, farming, sales assistant etc. Work with companies like L’oreal, Tod’s, Iper who provide training without certification which enrich their curriculum to go back to work to develop skill in some area. Pay for period of traineeship with community after courses and apprenticeship so they work in San Patrugnano to go back to society with money and experience. 80% find a job in which they were trained. Work is dignity. 

Pamela Concho, SENDA Chile: Chile has a reintegration program to allow development to favour people who need this program. As part of the program we have work orientation and guidance to allow for social integration for people undergoing treatment. We know well that people who are facing substance abuse problem have to deal with problems of this issue and stigma and other road blocks in their recovery process that are eroding identity processes needed to consolidate recovery. Evident that we require comprehensive responses based on resources and needs of participants. Responsibility of state and communities to build network and sustain achievement of people in treatment centres. Developing work guidance and defined methods and objectives which are guiding our action plans. Main objective for this work guidance is to foster development of abilities and skills to improve employability. Doing necessary work for work opportunity networks in offices around chile. Need to incorporate motivational aspect as this motivation is often a barrier because of stigma and roadblocks facing those undergoing treatment. Offices and development of work guidance is from 2013, since then we develop programs based on methodological manual guiding teams on what to do, when to do it, and expected results. IT system to consolidate all interventions that all national offices implement. General view of implementation to verify results being obtained. Performing results assessment identifying main challenges, establish priorities for continued work. There are at least 5 important elements needed for work guidance porgrame. Importance of relevance and coordinating with local offices, public private partnership, taking into consideration characteristics of people looking for work in specific territory to coordinate needs with skill development. Create framework founded on gender perspective to establish well measurable objectives, achievable objectives in both short and long term. Developed technical methodologies that have been provided to teams working on specific issues. Working on manuals providing guidance to teams with expected results, establishing foundation for mechanism to operate. Decisions taken can be well aligned with methodology. This has been a priority at government level in Chile. This is implemented for men and women. We need to close gaps and favour equity and increase opportunities we have found in offices we work on. This type of systems in favour of people undergoing treatment so need to establish consultancy office linked to program to link two intevention areas: work guidance and treatment program. Need to be complimentary programs and have coordination across teams. Need technical support and national and local level for better decision making and budget allocation. Need recording system for fundamental piece of program to know and understand what is being done in regions and offices to establish results indicators that point to quality. Working on equality indicators to allow us to strengthen the continuous improvement of offices. As part of this we believe guidance programs need to focus on target populations a specific support on labour and work guidance and main need and urgency to incorporate work wise. Programs need to be people centred. Customizable schedules and goals so people guide progress. Establish professional intervention, propose people based ona ctivities to attain goals people establish themselves. Implementing across 5 regions with 600 ppl annual participation and 40% are women, 70% job market participation after this process.

Veronica Paciello, Uruguay: Share good practices of Uruguay within context of LAC. Within framework of program we saw exchange of San Patrignano community and our countries. National drugs atrategy 2021-2025 – whole country committed to this project for people who have drug abuse and other issues so they can receive support. We have created comprehensive health area linked to different areas to include different stakeholders, healthcare, education among others. Necessary for creating national prevention, treatment, social inclusion program with gender, age and human rights perspective. Strategy has different strategic areas for social inclusion to redce vulnerabilities. Trying to promote strategy for people to access different policies i.e. professional development, social reintegration and labour reintegration. Part of national health program and defines what services both public and private facilities need to provide to drug users. Integral national health system and this is for benefit of people with drug abuse behaviours. Treatment programs, ambulantory service provision system, daycare system, specialized facilities and these are all adapted to different populatiosn across drug use level adapted to different individualities of people part of treatment centres. Individual therapeutic approach and collective approach implemented based on needs identified. Important to think about concrete actions on the national level and subnational level, talk about policies in different areas, job, education, community, inclusion, housing, social protection, culture, health. All are important to establish agreements with different institutions for them to be part of the wider healthcare system. Access to citizenship and social protection there are specific things to promote access to services, interaction with ministry for interior and social protection to gain access to social benefits, pension etc. We can also talk about other needs of population, programs for supporting women, children, adolescents, one organization carried out with children. Need to find housing solutions for people in programs, overnight care centres, daycare centres, hostels. These help create network of support. Talking about community inclusion we carry out actions for establishing networks and collaborate with public institutions for detection programs, support to families, in contact with national care system which provides support for programs addressed to children. Educational realm we need to articulate and accompany based on therapeutic strategy interactipon with activities. Person can develop social competencies. Coleaborate with institutions and education facilities to help develop professional abilities. Agreement with telecom administtratoions for access to devices and ICT for individuals. Ensure access to job market, culture, leisure and sport. Liaise with institutions. Examples of good practice: treatment and prevention program in prisons, social integration program in prisons for teenagers, part of design and implementation of treatment and prevention devices in prison system. Social reintegration through participation of inmates through other activities.

Jennifer Boucaud-Blake, Trinidad and Tobago: Cooperation and partnerships with international agencies to strengthen responses to challenges of drug control. For period 2021-2022 decrease in arrests for possession. Decrease in cannabis offences due to amendments in dangerous drug acts that decriminalizes marijuana, however also decrease in other drug crimes. Continue to include seizure exercises but a balanced approach is necessary. Alternatives to incarceration is necessary. We have collaboration with SICAD in case care management. Increase in participants in terms of mentors and clients and share experiences with other members. 

Sintra Maharaj, Trinidad and Tobago: Promoting social integration of justice with individuals with substance use disorders. Collaborative project. CCM project ongoing in Trinidad over two year period. Positive experiences so far. Systematically supports access to services across agencies and providers. Previously lots of services but low ability to access. What CCM does is end revolving door cycle of relapse in consumption and promote successful social integration of clients. In order to achieve this mentor program introduced. Envisaged that mentors will add another layer of support for clients based on consistent interaction, openness and trust. Interaction with clients, mentors, case care manageres all assisting clients. Clients find it difficult to navigate road to recovery independently to support positive outcomes and decrease isolation. Mentors are outstanding members of the community from right across Trinidad and Tobago. Many stakeholders who are used to source mentors. Participants who are performing well can volunteer to become mentors and continue to give back to the program. Mentors motivate clients to connect with community resources through public private partnerships. Manager will introduce mentor to assist mentee. Services part of ministry of health, drug testing, financial assistance, getting paperwork. Cooperation with alcoholics and narcotic anonymous and mentors assist in this regard. Collaborations with CSO for outreach in supporting clients. People interested in the system and becoming mentors. Becoming mentor is not just coming off the street, need stringent training, key component of success of the program. Initial training with review, mentors need 90% attendance and practical assessment. Training helps build relationship and identify skills, challenges and solutison. Two groups of mentors, 23 mentors have been trained. Limitations in accessing mentors is a challenge, over concentration of mentees in specific areas without corresponding mentors. Mentors sometimes have difficulties with clients and need additional training. Substance use challenges make relations with mentors difficult. Mentors are committed and some mentors have gone above and beyond.