SIDE EVENT – 60th Session of the UN Human Rights Council

 Tuesday, 16 September 2025 - 14:00–15:00 (CET)


 Room Concordia 5, Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland

Co-sponsored by Colombia, Greece, Switzerland, GANHRI, WHO, UN-Habitat, CELS, Dejusticia, Elementa DDHH, EHRA, INPUD, Harm Reduction International, Hayat, Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, Skoun Lebanese Addictions Centre, SSDP International, 

At the 60th session of the Human Rights Council, the Geneva core group on drug policy will table a resolution addressing the human rights implications of drug policy. This marks a strategically significant moment, as it will be the first time that the Council may adopt a drug policy resolution under its own authority -outside of a global drug control review framework.

Thus, the resolution presents a unique opportunity to constructively emphasise how drug policy reform can prevent serious and systemic human rights violations, including the death penalty, extrajudicial killings, and torture.

To date, drug policy discussions at the Human Rights Council have primarily focused on the right to health. This is reflected in past resolutions, as well as in the involvement of treaty bodies and special procedure mandates – most notably, the UN special rapporteur on the right of everyone to the highest possible standard of physical and mental health and the Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights have taken a leading role.

A side event during the 60th session of the Human Rights Council offers a timely opportunity to broaden this conversation. It aims to engage Member States, human rights experts, and mechanisms on how extreme drug policies contribute to systemic and serious human rights violations – such as the right to life, liberty, and freedom from torture and arbitrary detention’. This event will adopt a constructive approach, highlighting reform pathways such as the abolition of the death penalty, international cooperation, and decriminalisation as effective tools for preventing human rights violations.

The side event will also galvanize a constructive conversation to foster the integration of key language on extreme responses to drugs and on current threats to civil society space into the 2025 HRC resolution.

 H.E. Ambassador Gustavo Gallón, Permanent Mission of Colombia to the UN (TBC)

 Ruth Dreifuss, Global Commission on Drug Policy

, International Network of People Who Use Drugs (video)

, National Secretary for Drug Policy, Brazil

 Ann Fordham, International Drug Policy Consortium

Drug policy reform: A powerful tool to prevent serious human rights violations

In 2025, the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) will continue its annual thematic discussions as part of a multi-year workplan (2024–2028) to assess and implement international drug policy commitments. These discussions aim to address key challenges identified in the 2019 Ministerial Declaration and prepare the ground for a comprehensive stock-taking in 2028.

The 2025 discussions will focus on urgent global issues, with dedicated sessions for cross-cutting topics and “Other substantive matters” that Member States wish to raise. 

Each session will begin with a presentation by UNODC’s Research and Analysis Branch and feature a moderated panel of experts from Member States, international and regional organisations, UN entities, and civil society. Interactive discussions will follow, allowing for broad participation and the sharing of national experiences and concerns.

The VNGOC is looking for 17 civil society experts interested in contributing to the CND thematic discussions, with will have a focus on health (more information 

). For each panel, up to three NGOs will have the possibility of presenting their work/positioning, for 2-3 minutes. Interpretation will not be available during the meeting, so all abstracts and statements have to be submitted in English.

Deadline to apply: 24 August 2025, 11:45 pm, CEST

Thematic discussions on challenges identified in the 2019 Ministerial Declaration

Drug treatment and health services continue to fall short of meeting needs, and drug-related deaths have increased.

Rates of HIV, hepatitis C, and other blood-borne diseases associated with drug use (including injecting drug use) remain high in some countries.

The adverse health consequences and risks associated with new psychoactive substances have reached alarming levels.

The availability of internationally controlled substances for medical and scientific purposes, including for pain relief and palliative care, remains low to non-existent in many parts of the world.

CND Intersessional meeting - Thematic discussions on the implementation of all international drug policy commitments following up to the 2019 Ministerial Declaration (Autumn 2025)

Angela McBride, Executive Director at South African Network of People Who Use Drugs

Dr. Andrew Scheibe, Technical Advisor, TB HIV Care, Researcher, University of Pretoria.

We are thrilled to invite you to INHSU 2025, which will take place in our vibrant home city of Cape Town, South Africa. It marks INHSU’s first return to South Africa since a satellite conference—INHSU Africa—was held here in 2020, just before COVID-19. It was a pivotal moment for our community, and bringing the main conference here in 2025 will be a platform for the continued strengthening of community-led networks in the region on both local and national levels. It’s also a testament to INHSU’s continued growth into a global platform that meaningfully involves people who use drugs, with an increasing focus on representatives from Africa.

13th International Conference on Health and Hepatitis in Substance Users (INSHU 2025)

The ECDD is a scientific advisory body to WHO that consists of an independent group of experts in the field of drugs and medicines and drug dependence liability.

The 48th Expert Committee on Drug Dependence meeting will be held from 20-22nd October 2025. A public information session will be held on 20 October 2025. 

This meeting will consider the following substances and make recommendations for their scheduling to the CND: 

 N-pyrrolidino isotonitazene (Isotonitazepyne) and N-Desethyl etonitazene.

The WHO’s Expert Committee on Drug Dependence (ECDD) is the body responsible for conducting reviews towards the scheduling, re-scheduling or de-scheduling of psychoactive substances. The recommendations of the WHO's ECDD are voted upon by the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), typically at its March session.

This meeting marks a pivotal step in the international community’s coca review, offering the first WHO critical assessment in nearly 75 years. It could correct historical injustices, reconcile drug control with Indigenous rights, and reshape treaty schedules to permit traditional uses while maintaining controls on cocaine production.

Registration and further information will be made available in September.

48th meeting of the WHO Expert Committee on Drug Dependence (ECDD)

Get ready for another unmissable HIT Hot Topics Conference! This year, we’re back on 

, bringing together the leading voices in harm reduction—because at HIT, harm reduction has ALWAYS been our focus. Expect cutting-edge discussions, inspiring speakers, and a space where passion meets action.

As always, we’ll have events planned for the night before, plus our legendary Cavern Club charity event on the evening of the conference. Stay tuned for more details and mark your calendar—Hot Topics 2025 is not to be missed!

 If you are buying tickets for more than one person and/or for someone other than yourself please remember to give us the attendee names and email addresses in the ‘Order Note’ section of the checkout page.

Full Priced Latecomer: £180 Plus VAT (£216)

HIT Hot Topics conference 2025

Reform Drug Policy. Join us in Detroit. #Reform2025

The Reform Conference is the premier gathering of the growing and dynamic drug policy reform movement. Every other year, the 

 hosts this event, bringing together people working on the full range of drug policy issues from across the United States and around the world to listen, learn, and strategize. In 2025, the conference will take place in Detroit, Michigan from November 12-15.

We offer two scholarship programs to support the attendance of people directly impacted by the drug war and to ensure that the diversity of our movement is reflected in our Reform Conference attendees.

The scholarship funds are meant for people who are:

in need of financial assistance to attend the conference,

in a position to clearly benefit from going to the conference,

directly impacted by the drug war, and/or

already affiliated with a complimentary or allied movement, with a solid potential to take home new knowledge, skills and contacts that will benefit their local work in any and all issue areas of the drug policy reform movement.

The International Scholarships application 

 If you are based outside of the U.S. and need financial assistance to attend the Reform Conference, 

The National Scholarships applications will open after May 15th. If you are based in the U.S. and need financial assistance to attend the Reform Conference, we will have two applications available – one for individuals and one for groups planning to bring 4 or more people to the conference.

We strategized, built community, and organized around:

Decriminalizing Drugs and Building Health-Based Alternatives

Ensuring Our Systems Help, Not Hurt by Uprooting the Drug War from Our Daily Lives

Reinvesting Resources into Communities and Divesting from Punitive Police Responses

Rethinking and Reducing Punishment of People in the Drug Trade

Legalizing and Regulating Drugs the Right Way

 to see programs and videos from previous years.

International Drug Policy Reform Conference 2025

 Accra International Conference Centre(AICC)

 Catalysing Integrated Sustainable Responses to end AIDS, TB & Malaria.

Catalysing Africa’s progress towards triple elimination and sustainable resilient health systems through innovation and digital technologies.

Promote cooperation among governments, communities, the private sector, and international organizations to enhance health security and improve pandemic preparedness and response.

Strengthen capacity and facilitate knowledge exchange for healthcare professionals, researchers, and policymakers.

Empower communities and promote human rights and gender equality in the context of HIV/AIDS and emerging and reemerging diseases.

Mobilize domestic resources and political commitment to sustain Africa's progress towards achieving the UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets and global health security goals.

23rd International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA)

 Vienna International Centre (C-Building, Boardroom D).

This year, the reconvened sessions of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) and the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) will take place jointly. 

The Reconvened 68th CND and the 34th CCPCJ Reconvened Session will be held on 4–5 December 2025, at the Vienna International Centre (C-Building, Boardroom D).

Reconvened CND 68th Session

“Accelerating crime prevention, criminal justice and the rule of law: protecting people and planet and achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in the digital age.”

The Fifteenth Crime Congress will be held from 25 to 30 April 2026 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates under the overall theme “Accelerating crime prevention, criminal justice and the rule of law: protecting people and planet and achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in the digital age”, in line with the General Assembly resolution 

High-level segment (Heads of State, Ministers, etc.)

Single declaration, later reviewed by the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice

Regional preparatory meetings starting in 2025

Emphasis on participation of least developed countries, civil society, academia, and NGOs

Encourages early preparation by Member States and creation of national preparatory committees

Events