| dc.description.abstract | The purpose of this study is to find out how the attitudes of young people can influence
the success of community interventions aimed at curbing drug abuse. This study will
assess the attitudes of youth towards existing strategies and will be able to determine
and identify gaps that are in the existing interventions being used. Through this the
community will be able to review the current programmes and initiate additional
initiatives to compliment the current ones and also identify additional resources that
can be used in the fight against drug abuse
According to a rapid assessment done by Dr. Halima Mwenesi in 1996, the awareness
of the community needs to be raised through preventive education so that the community
can participate more effectively in the control and prevention of substance abuse. The
same report also recommends that existing institutions in the community such as schools,
churches/mosques and NGO/CBOs can be used as entry points in the fight against drugs.
Review of current literature strongly indicates that participatory approaches in
community programmes are a necessity for one to achieve successful interventions.
As such policy makers and institutions need to involve the youth in the development of
strategies aimed at controlling/preventing drug abuse. Besides this, the participation by
the youth in programmes that affect their livelihood will definitely empower them by
creating a sense of ownership.
The findings of this study will be useful in the creatidn and development of strategies to
fight drug abuse within th(.\.,community and for the community. We will also be able to
find out the young peoples' ideas on desirable interventions and-better strategies for the
prevention of drug abuse.
This study is an attitudinal study by nature and the main research method used is the
survey method by use of semi-structured questionnaires. This will be administered to the
sample population in Kibera area of Nairobi. Data will be analysed by use of a statistical
software (SPSS 11), which will enable us to come up reliable information and be able to
draw conclusions and recommendations of our study. | en |
