NACADA Reveals Your Friends Are Main Source Of Drugs

You are more likely to be introduced to drugs and substance abuse by your friends than any other source if a new report by the National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) is anything to go by.

According to the report titled Status Of Drugs And Substance Use Among University Students In Kenya released on Thursday, February 13, 66.4 percent of those surveyed indicated that their friends were the main sources of drugs. 

The survey, conducted in partnership with 17 universities, including private and public ones, involved over 15,000 students across Kenya’s eight administrative regions.

If not friends, students also get their drugs from canteen/bar/premises within the neighbourhood at 59.3 percent with fellow students within the institution following suit at 56 percent, findings that outline the influence of social circles in university settings in terms of drug and substance abuse in the country.

Interior CS Kipchumba Murkomen and Police IG Douglas Kanja during the launch of the NACADA Status Of Drugs And Substance Use Among University Students In Kenya on February 13, 2025. /MARVIN CHEGE.VIRAL TEA KE

Other sources of drugs include online purchasing over websites or social media (39.4%); canteen/bar/premises within the institution (28.0%); support/non-teaching staff (11.4%); and lecturers/teaching staff (7.0%).

The report obtained by Viral Tea also outlined the prevalence of alcohol among university students, with alcohol consumption reported by 87.3% of students, followed by cigarette use at 64.4% and shisha at 41.2%.

Besides alcohol, students also reported using other substances, including vaping (31%), nicotine pouches (30.7%), kuber (23%), and snuff or chewed tobacco (22.1%).

The study revealed that around one in five university students (20%) consumed alcohol in the past month, while one in eight had used at least one form of tobacco.

Additionally, substances such as shisha, e-cigarettes, cigarettes, and cannabis were commonly used, with one in every 22, 17, 14, and nine students, respectively, reporting usage in the last 30 days.

The study also highlighted the alarming use of harder drugs, showing that one in 24 students had used inhalants, while cocaine and heroin were consumed by one in 63 and one in 59 students, respectively, within the past month.

The data was gathered from 15,678 students, with a 99.7% response rate. Of these, 61.5% attended public universities, while 38.5% attended private institutions.

The findings also indicated more male respondents, making up 54.2% of the total, compared to 45.2% of female respondents.

Speaking during the release of the report, NACADA Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Anthony Omerikwa outlined the difficult task of detecting synthetic drugs because their chemical precursors are often legal and easily accessible, a matter contributing to their rising trend.

“This is like fighting an invisible enemy,” Omerikwa cautioned. “You don’t see it coming, but when you realize it’s around, it’s already too late.”

The NACADA boss further highlighted one of the most concerning findings of the study being the unexpected connection between drug use and last year’s youth-led protests.

Omerikwa noted that many young demonstrators were first exposed to drugs during the protests, misled by false claims that substances like cannabis could lessen the impact of tear gas.

The report revealed that some individuals arrested during the protests confessed to trying drugs for the first time during the demonstrations.

Omerikwa also cautioned that drug dealers are exploiting every opportunity, including protests, to introduce young people to substance use, fostering long-term addiction and sustaining demand for their illegal trade.

“Some of the young people who were in the protests became unexpected inductees into the space of drug use. They were deceived into believing that if they smoked bhang, the effects of tear gas would diminish to near zero,” he noted.