Drug tests in school need parental consent: Radrodro

Drug testing in schools requires parental consent and is currently a work in progress before implementation, says Minister for Education Aseri Radrodro.

Responding to questions in Parliament today, Mr Radrodro addressed concerns about the alarming rise in drug cases in schools after Opposition Member Premila Kumar asked whether there were plans to introduce drug testing.

“We need parental consent to undertake such activities,” Mr Radrodro said. “And this is something that is currently a work in progress before we implement this in the school.”

Ms Kumar had suggested drug testing be implemented to identify affected children early so they could receive proper counselling with their parents before influencing others.

Mr Radrodro’s response came after Opposition Member Hem Chand revealed statistics showing drug cases in schools had increased from 2,422 in 2021 to 3,500 cases, with 2,500 from secondary schools and 1,000 from primary schools.

Mr Radrodro outlined multiple strategies the ministry had implemented to combat drug trafficking in schools, including installing CCTV cameras in 46 primary schools and 30 secondary schools to monitor student activities.

The ministry is working closely with the National Substance Abuse Advisory Council to train teachers on identifying physical indicators of substance abuse. Training has been conducted in 162 secondary schools and 46 primary schools, with 928 student leaders also trained to identify signs of drug use during leadership training.

“This concern is not only the concern of the Ministry of Education, it’s also the concern of the Government,” Mr Radrodro said. “We should all take responsibility in trying to monitor and address drug trafficking in school.”

He stressed the ministry would continue working in partnership with the Fiji Police Force, Child Welfare Department, Ministry of Health, and faith-based organisations to ensure students do not become victims of drug-related activities.