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By Izunna Nkwachukwu
The Rotary Club of Victoria Garden City (VGC) has declared the rising abuse of drugs and other psychoactive substances among young people a major public health concern even as it unveiled an intervention programme aimed at preventing addiction before it takes root.
The club’s newly installed 30th President, Rotarian Emeka Kenneth Nsolibe, disclosed this in Lagos following his investiture, saying tackling substance abuse among youths would be one of the major priorities of his 2026/2027 presidential year.
Nsolibe said the club would intensify drug-awareness campaigns in schools and communities as well as organise sensitisation programmes and debates, while also exposing young people to leadership opportunities designed to build confidence, responsibility and positive alternatives to substance use.
“We are going to do a lot to create a lasting impact,” he said, announcing plans to sponsor 15 youths for a Rotary leadership programme this month, with drug-sensitisation activities scheduled to commence around November.
The initiative comes amid growing concerns over the impact of substance misuse on young Nigerians, particularly its links to poor academic performance, school dropout, mental health challenges, violence and other risky behaviours.
The keynote speaker at the event, Dr. Ibilola Amao, said the substance-abuse crisis could not be tackled effectively through occasional awareness campaigns alone.
Amao identified hopelessness, unemployment and limited opportunities as some of the underlying factors that could increase young people’s vulnerability to substance abuse.
She called for an integrated response involving healthcare, education, youth empowerment, environmental sanitation and economic opportunities.
“Sustainable development requires integrated solutions that combine healthcare, education, environmental sanitation, youth empowerment, and economic opportunities,” Amao said.
According to her, government agencies, Rotary clubs, faith-based organisations, community leaders and other stakeholders must work together to address the conditions that make young people susceptible to substance abuse.
Nsolibe said the substance-abuse intervention would form part of a broader community-health programme during his tenure.
The club plans to renovate selected healthcare facilities, conduct eye screenings for schoolchildren, provide health checks for pregnant women and install boreholes to improve access to clean water.
It will also collaborate with other Rotary clubs in the Lekki-Epe axis on market sanitation initiatives.
Nsolibe said the focus was to move away from one-off interventions and implement projects capable of producing lasting benefits in communities.
The youth component, he explained, would combine prevention, leadership development and access to positive opportunities, giving young people not only information about the dangers of substance abuse but also practical alternatives that could help shape their future.
Stakeholders at the event stressed the need for the government to complement community-based initiatives with stronger and sustained interventions.
These include expanding access to quality education and skills development, strengthening counselling and early-detection systems in schools, improving access to rehabilitation and mental-health services, enforcing existing drug-control laws and creating more opportunities for meaningful youth employment.
They also advocated stronger partnerships between government and credible civil-society organisations to scale successful prevention programmes.
The new agenda of the Rotary Club of VGC therefore places youth substance abuse within a wider public-health and development framework, with the club seeking to combine prevention, healthcare, leadership training and community development.
With the installation of Nsolibe as its 30th president, the club is positioning its 2026/2027 service year around interventions it says are intended to produce measurable and lasting impact, particularly among young people.
