UNIS/MA/336
26 February 2024
Media representatives are invited to the global launch of the
Room C0225A, C-Building, 2nd Floor
Vienna International Centre
With Jallal Toufiq,
President of the International Narcotics Control Board
This year the Report has a special focus on the role of the Internet, including social media, in drug trafficking and use. It explores the challenges and opportunities for drug control, prevention, and treatment, in the era of the Internet, with a specific look at the evolving landscape of online drug trafficking.
The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) 2023 Annual Report analyses the global availability of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances for medical and scientific purposes and highlights the persistent disparities in access to medicines for the treatment of pain. The Precursors Report focuses on trafficking in synthetic drugs including non-medical synthetic opioids, cocaine and their precursors which represent a growing threat to public health.
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The Report is embargoed until 11 a.m. CET on 5 March 2024
Please register to attend the press briefing in person by writing to press.vienna[at]un.org by COB Monday 4th March 2024.
The briefing will be livestreamed on UN Web TV and journalists not in Vienna can submit questions to press.vienna[at]un.org.
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To receive an advance copy of the press kit and for interview requests, please contact:
Anne Thomas
Public Information Officer, UNIS Vienna
Tel: (+43)699-1459-5588
Email: anne.thomas[at]un.org
We must transform how we produce and consume, and how we value nature, says the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, "Biodiversity is the bedrock of life and a cornerstone of sustainable development.... Biodiversity loss is a global challenge. No one country, however rich or powerful, can address it alone. Nor can they live without the rich biodiversity that defines our planet."
LGBTIQ+ people around the world face an onslaught of hate speech, attacks, and restrictions on their rights. The power of communities is the theme this year which reminds us that we are strongest together. "LGBTIQ+ people, and those working with them to secure their rights, have proved time and again the value of communities in providing support and driving change," says UN Secretary-General António Guterres
"From the telegraph to radio, from the Internet to Artificial Intelligence, technology has transformed how we live, work, and connect." — António Guterres
Barbados signed and deposited its instrument of ratification for the United Nations Convention on the International Effects of Judicial Sales of Ships (the “Beijing Convention on the Judicial Sale of Ships”) at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on 8 May 2025.