The National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) has raised concerns over rising cases of primary school kids abusing drugs.
Newly appointed Nacada board member Farida Rashid said boys as young as nine, are engaging in drug abuse at the expense of their education.
She said it is worrying to note that boys are now selling drugs to their peers in primary schools in different parts of the Coast region.
Rashid said the number of parents reporting cases of drug and substance abuse among their children has continued to rise in the recent past.
“Many worried mothers have reported to me that they have caught their young sons with drugs,” said Rashid, as quoted by the Nation.
She also said the authority’s effort to create awareness in different institutions have proven to be futile.
“Thousands of children and parents are suffering because of drug abuse and even though we have tried creating awareness in schools and linking addicts with rehab centres, it is still a big problem,” she said.
Reports by Nacada indicate that over 60, 000 youth from the Coast region are addicted to drugs and other substances.