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People Fixing the World
Portugal, drugs and decriminalisation
People Fixing the World
Jun 18, 2019

In the 1990s Portugal had a major heroin problem, and when it came to people injecting drugs it had one of the highest rates of HIV infection in the EU. It took a radical approach and decriminalised all personal drug use.

The law introduced in 2001 means people carrying drugs for personal consumption aren’t prosecuted - instead they are referred to health and social services to receive treatment, and the focus is on harm reduction.

And the strategy worked. The number of people using drugs fell dramatically, new HIV and Hepatitis C infections dropped and drug-related crime became much less of a problem.

So why haven’t more countries followed their lead and adopted this model?

Produced by Hannah McNeish for BBC World Service

(Photo Credit: Getty Images)

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People Fixing The World from the BBC is about brilliant solutions to the world's problems. We release a new edition every Tuesday. We'd love you to let us know what you think and to hear about your own solutions. You can contact us on WhatsApp by messaging +44 8000 321721 or email [email protected]. And please leave us a review on your chosen podcast provider.

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(Photo: A mountain gorilla in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Credit: Richard Kenny)


23min 14sec

Portugal, drugs and decriminalisation

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