UNODC warns of record global drug use and shift to synthetic opioids

The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reported that 331 million people aged 15‑64 used drugs in 2024, representing 6.2 % of the global population in that age group – the highest level on record. Cannabis remains the most widely used substance (256 million users), followed by opioids (63 million), amphetamines (32 million), cocaine (25 million) and MDMA (21 million).

Synthetic drugs are proliferating: authorities identified 755 new psychoactive substances in 2024, including 118 never seen before, and the variety of drugs seized is now five times higher than before 2000. The report highlights a turning point in the global opioid market as Afghanistan’s 2022 opium‑crop ban sharply reduced heroin production. Traffickers are increasingly turning to synthetic opioids such as fentanyls, nitazenes and "orphines," raising concerns that these more potent substances could replace heroin and cause greater harm. While Myanmar’s opium output has risen to over 1 000 tonnes, it does not offset the loss from Afghanistan’s former 6 000‑tonne productions.

Methamphetamine markets have become truly global, expanding across the Near and Middle East, Africa and parts of Europe, and cannabis trafficking is now more international than ever. The report stresses that drug‑related harms are amplified by poverty, homelessness, mental‑health issues and gender disparities, with women far less likely to receive treatment. Conflict‑affected refugees and internally displaced persons are especially vulnerable, facing heightened risks amid humanitarian crises.