MALAYSIA'S ANTI-DRUG AGENCY TO INTRODUCE CURE & CARE SERVICE CENTRE FOR 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 10 (Bernama) -- In enhancing the effectiveness of
rehabilitation of narcotic drug dependants, the National Anti-Drug Agency will
introduce the Cure and Care Service Centre for the target group this year.

The agency's director-general Zuraidah Mohamed said its latest product
would provide treatment and rehabilitation, besides functioning as a day
activity centre at the clinics to be identified soon.

"While functioning as a day centre and temporary shelter, it will conduct
outreach and intervention programmes, provide counselling and act as a reference
centre," she said in a statement issued here Sunday.

Zuraidah said this was one of the agency's two new products this year in
response to the call by Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein for
innovativeness in fighting drug abuse and trafficking.

She said the other product was the community house, a rehabilitation
facility run entirely by the local community and which also functioned as a day
service centre or temporary shelter.


She said each community house would have a committee called the Community
House Committee involving the local community to run it.

Before this, the agency had set up the 1Malaysia Cure and Care Clinics where
until last Dec 30, 1,897 people had benefited from the service at six such
clinics in Peninsular Malaysia states namely in Kuala Lumpur, Kelantan, Penang,
Johor, Sabah and Sarawak, respectively.

Zuraidah said the agency would also mobilise 101,062 volunteers or Rakan
Anti Dadah (Rada) through its drug prevention programmes.

"We will provide training for Rada members, especially in counselling and
assisting us rehabilitate drug addicts," she said.

-- BERNAMA