Drug use among Egyptian public employees drops to 1.7%

CAIRO – 6 December 2021: Chairman of the Fund for Drug Control and Treatment of Addiction (FDCTA) Amr Othman stated in a phone-in Sunday that the prevalence rate of drug use among public employees declined from eight percent in 2017 to 1.7 percent at present.

That is because a law was promulgated making screening for drug use among civil employees mandatory, giving a chance to those testing positive to recover within six months or face termination.

The official pointed out that almost 29,000 had applied to receive treatment asserting that workers at public institutions do not get prior notice of the screening.

Head of the Testing Unit at the fund Hassan Harak stated in August that samples are taken from 1,500-2,000 employees everyday across the country unanticipatedly.