Drugs used by young people: The effects of parental monitoring and supervision on prevention in Buzi, Kalehe territory

Drug use and abuse carries risk in people of all ages. All countries of Africa, DRC included, youth and adults, rich and poor, rural and urban people abuse drugs. Drug use continue to exacerbate instability and inequality, while causing untold harm to people’s health, safety and well-being. It is in the best interests of every nation, including DRC, to take a firm stand in combating all aspects of drug abuse. It has been noted that drug abuse is fast spreading to rural areas especially Buzi in Kalehe Territory. The aims of our study were: i. To establish the causes of drug use by young people aged 14 to 24 in BUZI. ii. To determine the consequences of drug use by young people aged 14 to 24 in the BUZI in Kalehe territory, DRC. iii. To identify practical strategies for sharing information between parents and young people on the prevention of drug and substance abuse. This was a mixed methodological approach based on a community survey with quantitative data collection methods, including a cross-sectional descriptive design. The surveys provided information on the prevalence and types of drugs used by young people. The study was both quantitative and qualitative, using a survey questionnaire, while the qualitative part used focus group discussion for data collection. In view of the results obtained in the field, these results have shown that the prevalence of drug addiction is much higher among young people in the Kalehe territory, 98.8% of whom use drugs. According to our results, 98.88% of those questioned said they were ready to stop taking drugs if certain precautions were taken. 93.82% of those surveyed claimed that parents and/or other family members had already engaged in therapeutic dialogues and discussions with their children (young people).