Prime Highlights:

• UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed creates National Anti‑Narcotics Authority to unify drug control efforts across the country.
• The new authority will combine policy, enforcement, chemical precursor control, treatment, and international coordination.

Key Fact:

• The Authority supplants the General Department of Anti‑Narcotics at the Interior Ministry and reports to the Cabinet.
• A centralized national database will be created to collect data and link anti-narcotics activities.

Key Background

In a historic step to enhance the country’s national drug control, UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan signed a federal decree-law to create the National Anti-Narcotics Authority. The new independent authority will have direct reporting to the UAE Cabinet, a major departure from the nation’s anti-narcotics regime. Sheikh Zayed bin Hamad bin Hamdan Al Nahyan has been tasked with spearheading this overarching initiative to enhance prevention, enforcement, and rehabilitation programs as chairman.

The main function of the Authority shall be to formulate and enforce collective national policies for curbing drug abuse and dismantling narcotic syndicates. This shall be carried out in close coordination with federal and state law enforcement agencies to intercept drug traffic along terrestrial, maritime, and aerial border posts by taking tough legal action against drug traffickers.

In addition to enforcement, the Authority will also provide regulation and control of chemical precursors, or the chemicals that are potentially misused for illicit drug production. This would mean strict licensing regulations, surveillance of trade and storage, as well as elaborate customs inspection controls to avoid diversion of the chemicals illicitly.

In addition, the new agency will also be responsible for treating addiction, rehabilitation programs, and public awareness campaigns with the integration of healthcare activities with law enforcement activities. Research on drug trends and studies will not only assist evidence-based policymaking but also improve prevention. One of the most important features of the new system is the creation of a centralized national database to assist stakeholders in better coordination and improve joint response systems.

This has been embraced by professionals as a appreciative step of the UAE’s holistic system that consolidates prevention, enforcement, treatment, and legislation. This institutional change has proved the nation’s zero-tolerance for drugs and a keen desire to establish a solid, integrated, and responsive system to combat emerging drug threats at the regional and national levels.

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