At a busy intersection near central Helsinki, even drug addicts encountered by the‘AFP recognize it: Finland faces a serious drug problem, particularly among young people. This scourge has reached an unprecedented level, says a man in his thirties, who gives his name as Stefano. In 2023, this small Nordic country of 5.5 million inhabitants recorded 310 overdose deaths, more than 80% of them men, according to figures from the Finnish Statistics Agency. Young people under 25 represent a third of these deaths (91).
According to the European Union Drugs Agency (EUDA), Finland is ranked fourth among EU countries with the highest proportion of overdose deaths among those under 25 in 2022, behind Slovakia, Austria… and Luxembourg. In 2022 in the Grand Duchy, a total of eight people died due to drug use, compared to 12 in 2015.
In Finland, “the situation has become unbearable”, complains to theAFP Annuska Dal Maso, manager at the A-Clinic Foundation in the Finnish capital, a support NGO for drug addicts. She is worried about the imminent arrival of strong opioids in Finland and believes that the country is not equipped to deal with them. “Fentanyl is already a problem in Estonia and it is only a matter of time before it hits Finland,” she warns. In Luxembourg, the substances most often causing an overdose are opioids and cocaine, according to the latest information provided by the authorities.
During the 2000s, buprenorphine, a powerful opioid sold under the name Subutex, along with amphetamine, were the most abused drugs in Finland, often mixed with alcohol and other drugs, says Pirkko Kriikku, forensic toxicologist at the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL). “Buprenorphine causes the greatest number of deaths in Finland,” she notes.
The reasons behind this trend are multiple: attitudes towards drugs have changed, hard drugs are more accessible and the mental health of young people has deteriorated.
Substances can be ordered in a few clicks on encrypted messaging services, “as easily as clothes,” according to Pirkko Kriiku. But only 30% of strong opioid users are adequately monitored. “Twenty years ago, Finland was a pioneer in reducing drug-related harm, but today we are lagging behind other countries,” notes Margareeta Hakkinen.
The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare is calling for legalization of lower-risk consumption rooms, easier and faster access to proper follow-up, while reducing the stigma linked to drug addiction. However, “shooting rooms” have yet to gain political ground. In 2022, Annuska Dal Maso submitted a petition to the Finnish Parliament, calling on them to launch at least an experimental phase.
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