Illicit Drug use in the Asia Pacific Region - Burnet Institute

Situational analysis of illicit drug issues and responses in the Asia–Pacific region
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2 .9 Myanmar
Population: 42,720,196
2 .9 .1 Overview of
recent drug trends
Opium, heroin and amphetamine-type
substances (ATS) are the most commonly
used drugs in Myanmar . The use of cannabis,
codeine and tranquillisers has also been
reported but to a lesser extent . Heroin use
predominates in the Kachin State, Northern
Shan State and in the major cities, while
opium use is more common in Eastern and
Southern Shan State and in the Kayah State .
Arrest and seizure data suggest that drug use
is mainly a male phenomenon .
2 .9 .2 Prevalence of drug use
There were 62,000 registered drug users in
Myanmar in 2002; however, this figure is
considered to be a drastic underestimation
of the overall number of drug users in the
country . Estimates of the total number
of drug users in Myanmar range between
300,000 and 400,000 people, of which about
140,000 use injection as their preferred
method of administration .
In studies involving school-attending youth,
about 15 per cent of students reported using
drugs in their lifetime with non-prescribed
cough medicine (9%), diazepam (4%) and
cannabis (2%) being the most commonly
reported .
There is an overall trend toward increased
drug use in Myanmar .
2 .9 .3 Drug supply
Myanmar is the world’s second-largest producer
of opium and is thought to be one
of the largest producers of ATS . In 2004,
Myanmar produced 370 metric tonnes
of opium and approximately 700 million
ATS tablets, which corresponds to about
7 .5 per cent of total global manufacture .
Sustained crop eradication efforts have consistently
reduced the overall quantity of opium
produced in Myanmar over the past 10 years .
Opium cultivation has also been banned by
leaders in the autonomously controlled special
regions 1 and 2 .
The reduction in opium production and disruption
of some drug trafficking groups have
corresponded with a reduction in the amount
of heroin seized recently . ATS production
grew rapidly in Myanmar from 1996 with a
peak in 2001 . Production is thought to have
remained stable since then .
2 .9 .4 Drug-taking practices,
risk factors and trends
As opium becomes less available, a number of
new trends are emerging among drug users
in Myanmar . There is a shift toward ATS and
heroin use and rapid uptake of injecting
as the preferred method of administration
for heroin .
2 .9 .5 Summary table
The greatest risk associated with IDU in
Myanmar is HIV . It is estimated that about
30 per cent of all HIV cases in Myanmar are
IDUs with HIV prevalence of 50–90 per cent
among this group .
Needle sharing is the norm in Myanmar .
Factors such as poor access to clean needles
and poor knowledge about HIV lead many
IDUs to share their injecting equipment .
Estimated number of current drug users 300,000–400,000 (~140,000 IDUs)
Main drugs used Heroin, opium, methamphetamines,
cannabis, codeine and tranquillisers
Drugs injected Heroin, sometimes mixed
with tranquillisers
Estimated prevalence of
70%
HIV infection among IDUs
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Country summaries: Myanmar