Drugs and development: the great convergence?

A reformist agenda that advocates for a developmentalist approach to drugs issues has become increasingly mainstreamed. This more human-centred approach to drugs is welcomed and important. But how it gets operationalised in practice and the effects on some of the world’s most marginalised communities is another question – and one that merits scrutiny.

New research published in an International Journal of Drug Policy Special Issue spotlights the possible pitfalls and trade-offs, as well as the potentialities, of converging drugs and development policy fields, especially in conflict contexts.

This event asks: what is the relationship between illicit drugs and development, and what are the implications of developmentalising drugs? We hear three case studies from research in the drug- and conflict-affected borderlands of Afghanistan, Colombia and Myanmar, followed by reactions from expert discussant and Q&A.

Panelists:

• Francisco Gutiérrez (Professor, Universidad Nacional de Colombia)
• Jasmine Bhatia (Expert Advisor, Afghanistan Peace Process, European Institute for Peace)
• Jonathan Goodhand (Professor in Conflict and Development Studies, SOAS University of London)
• Patrick Meehan (Postdoctoral Research Fellow, SOAS University of London)

Discussant:

• Jenny Pearce (Research Professor, London School of Economics)

Moderator:

• Tim Rhodes (Professor of Public Health Sociology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine)