Cameroon Facing the Drug Trap: A Generation in Peril
The image of a peaceful and prosperous Cameroon fades in the face of a dark reality: drug use is plaguing its youth. With an alarming prevalence rate of 21% among school-aged youth, according to the National Drug Control Committee ( CNLD ), the country faces a major challenge. Far from being a marginal problem, this scourge affects hundreds of thousands of young people aged 10 to 24, jeopardizing their future and that of Cameroon as a whole. This article, based on recent statistical data and an in-depth analysis of the socio-economic context, deciphers the complex mechanisms that lead young people to drugs and explores avenues for curbing this scourge. Cannabis drugs image from stopblablacam 1. An Alarming Statistical Reality Data collected from the CNLD and DataCameroun reveal a worrying situation. In 2022, out of a secondary school population of 1,983,379 students , an estimated 416,510 young people are affected by drug use. This estimate, based on a prevalence of 21% , could even