Launch of the training manual for drug prevention in schools

The Syrian Future Movement is closely following the announcement issued by the Ministry of Education on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, regarding the launch of a simplified training guide for preventing drug and psychotropic substance use in the school environment, as part of the implementation of the national campaign “Syria Without Drugs.”

The Ministry dedicated its “Scientific Tuesday” meetings, held at school health clinics in various governorates, to discussing prevention methods and mechanisms for implementing the new guide, with the aim of promoting positive health behaviors among students.

Awareness sessions were also organized at the Mamoun Mansour Clinic with the participation of parents and students to raise awareness about ways to protect children.

The Syrian Future Movement notes that the launch of this training guide carries three main implications:

First, it embodies a shift in the methodology for dealing with the scourge of drugs, from a punitive security approach to a preventative awareness approach that targets the consciousness of the younger generations.

Targeting the school environment indicates a growing understanding that the real battle against drugs is won in the minds of the people before it is won on the streets.

Second: It reflects an institutional recognition of the seriousness of the spread of drugs and psychotropic substances, and the need for a comprehensive societal mobilization to confront it.

We see the launch of the “Syria Without Drugs” campaign as an indication that the state is dealing with this scourge as an existential threat requiring a comprehensive national strategy.

Third: It highlights the importance of partnership between schools and families in building an integrated system for protecting children.

The training manual was not limited to students, but also targeted parents and educational staff, reflecting a deep understanding that prevention cannot be achieved in isolation from the family and society.

The Syrian Future Movement believes that launching the manual, despite its importance, is not enough on its own to meet the magnitude of the challenge. Rather, it requires addressing a number of obstacles fundamentally:

1. The gap between procedures and implementation: Launching manuals and plans remains mere words on paper unless it is accompanied by monitoring mechanisms and rigorous follow-up to ensure effective implementation in schools.
2. Weak school health infrastructure: Despite their importance, school clinics suffer from a shortage of staff and equipment, which may hinder their ability to fulfill their awareness and prevention roles.
3. Continued drug influx: Any preventative effort faces a real challenge in light of the ongoing drug smuggling and spread, necessitating advanced security and intelligence coordination.
4. The need for sustainable awareness programs: While awareness sessions and scientific meetings are valuable, their impact remains limited unless they are transformed into sustainable, systematic programs within the curriculum.
5. Lack of impact evaluation mechanisms: It is unclear how the Ministry will measure the effectiveness of these programs in changing students’ actual behavior, making it difficult to develop and improve them.

Based on its national responsibility to monitor the progress of state-building and the strengthening of its institutions, the Syrian Future Movement recommends the following:

1. Transforming the guide into sustainable, systematic programs so that drug prevention is no longer an occasional activity, but is permanently integrated into the curriculum and extracurricular activities, with dedicated weekly awareness sessions.
2. Training educational and medical personnel through specialized training programs that enable them to handle drug use and prevention cases, and equip them with practical tools to effectively deliver awareness messages.
3. Strengthening cooperation with civil society organizations and leveraging their expertise in raising awareness about the dangers of drugs, and expanding the campaign to include all segments of society.
4. Launching a digital platform for school awareness, utilizing social media and interactive applications to reach students and parents, while ensuring engaging and age-appropriate content.
5. Establishing monitoring and evaluation mechanisms to track the implementation of the guide in schools, measure its impact on students’ actual behavior, and issue periodic reports that contribute to program development.

The Syrian Future Movement reiterates its welcome of this step, which enhances awareness among younger generations about the dangers of drugs and contributes to building a healthier and more stable society.

We also emphasize that the fight against drugs is an existential battle that requires mobilizing all energies and resources. It cannot be reduced to training manuals or media campaigns; rather, it requires a comprehensive national strategy that integrates prevention, treatment, and deterrence, and involves the school, the family, and the community.

The Syrian Future Movement will remain supportive of everything that promotes the health and safety of Syrian society, critical of everything that threatens the future of generations, and monitoring everything that is accomplished on the ground, striving for a new Syria in which awareness and science prevail, and which is free from the scourges of indoctrination and ignorance.