A NEW strain of higher-potency cannabis was being produced that is more addictive than ever before, says a UN official.

The drug’s level of tetrahydrocannabinol was about two to three percent in the “hippie era”; now it is over eight percent globally and, in Africa, could go up to 17 percent.

“It’s very addictive and it’s very dangerous,” said Jonathan Lucas, regional representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.

Presenting the annual World Drug Report 2008 in Pretoria yesterday, he said the level of abuse could be seen in an increase of South Africans seeking treatment.

However, such drugs as amphetamine-style stimulants like tik, which required precursor legal chemicals in their production process, posed the greatest threat on the drugs market. Law enforcement required the co-operation of pharmaceutical companies

Lucas commended the SA Police Service on its chemical monitoring programme, as evidenced particularly in the Western Cape. “It’s done a fantastic job in limiting the production (of tik).”

He said there was also a demand for the precursor drugs which could be obtained from South Africa from manufacturers in seven countries in the region. “So far South Africa has been able to stop this.”

Lucas said Afghanistan and Colombia were the biggest producers of heroin and cocaine respectively and this, parallel to their political and social stability, could not be ignored.

In both countries the government did not have control of its entire region and drug money was used to finance the agendas of political factions. “The weaker the state, the more we have the situation whereby drug traffickers can operate.”

About 26 million people globally take drugs, said the report launched in collaboration with the University of South Africa. — Sapa