The rapid expansion of Europe's cocaine markets highlights the limitations of supply-side enforcement and strains already insufficient health responses.
TNI explores viable ways to safeguard the genetic resources, cultural heritage and Indigenous knowledge of the coca leaf, as well as to protect legal markets from risks of misappropriation, biopiracy and corporate capture.
TNI's Programme Director for Drugs & Democracy reflects on his career, noting both key areas of progress and the persistent, damaging pull toward securitisation.
The recent WHO decision to maintain the international classification of coca leaf highlights ongoing tensions between drug control frameworks and Indigenous rights, cultural practices and scientific evidence.
The WHO’s decision to keep coca leaf under strict controls highlights weak legal reasoning, disregard for scientific evidence, and ongoing harms to Indigenous rights.
Harris et al. find that providing inhalation equipment alongside workforce training facilitates stronger relationships between providers and people who use crack, and new engagement opportunities, despite enduring structural barriers.
The WHO has upheld the coca leaf’s severe international scheduling, maintaining restrictions despite evidence of its safety and longstanding Indigenous use.
Ashton et al. find that these devices can reduce health risks for people who smoke crack cocaine, highlighting an overlooked harm reduction intervention with clear public health benefits.
By recommending that coca remain in the most restrictive category, the WHO has reinforced a decades-old, colonial classification that undermines scientific research and Indigenous rights.
