Preventing Drug Use, HIV/AIDS and Crime Through Family-Skills Training Programmes in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Multi-Country Field Experience Through a Global UNODC Project

This paper aims at filling a significant gap in the literature on experiences pertaining to the adaptability as well as practicality of implementation of evidence based family skills training programmes in developing countries. This would arm international researchers with further knowledge and experience on complications, challenges and needs to account in low income countries as gathered through the experience of a UNODC multi-country global project covering 15 countries in 4 different geographical regions. 

The international literature on implementation of family skills programme strongly support the evidence of the variety of positive outcome they produce as well as their cost-effective return with a saving of approximately US$10 in the long term for every dollar spent to implement the programme (NIDA, 2003). However, the scope of this international literature is mostly confined to developed countries.

It will describe the field experience developed in the process of setting up a global multi-country UNODC prevention project: including the selection of evidence-based programmes; the infrastructure cost for its piloting; the advocacy to mobilise governmental counterparts and policy makers to accept such pilots; the development and use of national cultural adaptation teams; the training and monitoring of culturally-adapted programme integrity and the evaluations of the implementation of the pilots (process and outcome); as well as the sustainability process plan for governmental counterpart to scale up the use of such programmes nationally and regionally.

This project of reference is a global UNODC project on promoting evidence based family skills to prevent risk behaviour among young people by strengthening and improving the capacity of families to take better care of their children. This project was initiation in early 2010 and is currently in operation in 15 countries in 5 different geographical regions. To date the project activities have been implemented in Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan), in Central America (Panama, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua), in South America (Brazil) in South-East Europe (Albania, Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia) and in East Africa (Kenya and Ethiopia).

All activities are undertaken in collaboration with the Governmental counterparts of the countries concerned, as well as with other local stakeholders representing various professional groups. The current evidence-based programmes being adapted and piloted are Strengthening the Family Programme 10-14 yrs (SFP) in South-East Europe and in Central America and East Africa, and Families and School Together (FAST) in Central Asia and South America. They were selected from the wide base of evidence based family skills programs currently available, advocated also by UNODC.

The implementation and supervision of the pilots have been undertaken in collaboration with the developers of the aforementioned evidence-based family skills programmes.