Solving drug and substance abuse problems amoung youth in Kenya: lessons from Dutch drug policy

Literature on policy learning and lesson-drawing is growing. This body ofliterature emphasizes that policies used in one country can be used to solve a similar problem elsewhere. However, caution is given that cross-national policy learning does not mean transplanting policies from one country to another. This paper looks at the policies dealing with drug and substance abuse in Kenya and compares with Dutch drug policy to see what lessons can be learned. The study establishes that drug policies in Kenya focus on supply reduction while Dutch drug policy focuses on harm reduction. The paper suggests that a main lesson from the principles of the Dutch drug policy is for policyrnakers in Kenya to handle drug abuse as a public health problem rather than as a criminal one. However, the paper does not suggest that all the principles ofthe Dutch drug policy are applicable in Kenya given that both countries are diverse in many aspects.