Katsina Govt. to offer psychosocial support to women drug addicts

Katsina State Government says it will offer psychosocial support to women and youth involved in drug abuse in the state.

“We want to see how the government can help the addicts by talking to them, empowering them and giving them some form of psychosocial support,” the Commissioner of Women Affairs, Hajiya Zainab Musa-Musawa, said on Tuesday in Katsina.

The commissioner told our correspondent that the government has been collaborating with the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in addressing the menace of drug and substance abuse by women in the state.

Musa-Musawa added that her ministry has designed a strategic roadmap to be unveiled within the first quarter of the year which would squarely check the illicit practice.

“We would embark on advocacy campaigns on the dangers of drug abuse especially among the women, some Non Governmental Organisations campaigning against drug abuse have already indicated interest to partner with us in this crusade.

“We would soon pay a visit to the NDLEA rehabilitation center with a view to see the quantum of young ladies undergoing rehabilitation therapy in the agency.

“We want to see how the government can help the addicts by talking to them, empowering them and by giving them some form of psychosocial support,” she said.

The commissioner lamented how a woman who is expected to be a mirror and school to her children would resort to the ugly trend of abusing or trafficking drugs and other illicit substances capable of ruining her future.

“We would counsel them, empower them, so that when they get back to their families they would be engaged in productive ventures.

“This year, our focus is on the fight against drug abuse as one of the key areas we intend to venture into and deliver our women out of the woods,” Musa-Musawa said.