BNN Initiates Formation of Active Anti-Drug Community Communication Forum

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia’s National Narcotics Agency (BNN) is initiating the formation of a solid and synergistic forum for active communication among anti-drug communities as a strategic solution to prevent the spread of narcotics. During a coordination meeting on the establishment of the Community Participation Forum (PSM) in Jakarta on Tuesday (28/4), BNN’s Chief Secretary Tantan Sulistyana stated that Indonesia is currently facing a multi-dimensional narcotics emergency, encompassing legal, social, economic, and health aspects. “Based on data from the 2025 national prevalence survey conducted by BRIN, BPS, and BNN, the rate of narcotics abuse in Indonesia shows an upward trend from 1.73% in 2023 to 2.11% in 2025,” Tantan said, as quoted from a statement confirmed in Jakarta on Monday. According to him, this figure equates to 4.15 million people aged 15-64 exposed to narcotics, with a relatively higher increase in rural areas. Consequently, he emphasised that drug syndicates are no longer targeting only urban areas. Therefore, Tantan hopes that the forum can serve as a structured “social engine” reaching even the remotest villages to effectively reduce prevalence on the ground. “The state cannot work alone. We need the presence of the community as the frontline guard to protect the younger generation from the threat of narcotics in order to realise Golden Indonesia 2045,” he stated. In addition, he revealed that BNN data indicates a massive scale of threat, with approximately 9,720 narcotics-vulnerable areas scattered at the village and sub-district levels across Indonesia. Besides loss of life, he continued, narcotics abuse also causes material losses amounting to trillions of rupiah annually. The destructive power of narcotics is considered more serious than corruption and terrorism because it permanently attacks the brain’s nervous system without any guarantee of total recovery. Not only that, he added, the challenges are growing heavier with the discovery of 170 new types of narcotics (New Psychoactive Substances/NPS), the number of which continues to increase. For this reason, he said the meeting is a crucial step in strengthening the national front against the increasingly alarming narcotics threat. Through the coordination meeting, BNN is committed to coordinating all community organisations to have the same determination and sense of care in anticipating narcotics entry routes, especially via sea routes which account for 95% of total smuggling.