By Ibrahim Sesay 

Caritas Freetown, with support from international partners ONG Guaguacuna, Fundación Atabal and Visió Sense Fronteres, on Tuesday 25th November 2025 officially opened a new rehabilitation and empowerment centre for girls affected by Kush. The facility, located in Makomba Village off Newton, will serve as a safe home and treatment space for 16 girls battling with Kush addiction.

In his remarks, the Executive Director of Caritas Freetown, Rev. Fr. Peter Konteh, said the centre represents far more than the commissioning of a building. “It is a national statement that we refuse to give up on our young people. We refuse to watch addiction destroy our communities or stand aside as families suffer in silence,” he said. He noted that addiction is not a moral failure but a medical, psychological and social challenge that requires structured care, compassion and dignity.

Rev. Fr. Peter Konteh added that the centre was established as a collective response to the growing suffering caused by Kush, which has broken dreams, shaken communities and destroyed families adding that Caritas has also witnessed “courage and the willing decision of young men and women to rise again,” a hope that inspired the establishment of the centre.

Giving an overview of the project, Morray Massaquoi, Project Supervisor, said the facility is built as a direct response to the alarming rise in substance abuse among young people. He explained that the centre is designed as a child-friendly, professionally supported environment where affected girls can access detoxification services, psychosocial support, therapeutic treatment, livelihood empowerment and reintegration assistance.

He highlighted Caritas’ extensive prevention work since the project began in November 2024, including school outreach, community sensitization, media engagement, peer-led discussions and awareness campaigns targeting political, religious and social groups.

“We have reached 40 communities and over 320,000 people, educated more than 10,800 students across 36 schools and indirectly impacted 54,000 relatives,” he said. He also disclosed plans to expand into legal support, court fine assistance and partnerships with legal aid institutions.

Director of Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Services at the Ministry of Social Welfare, Ansu Konneh, commended Caritas for establishing what he described as a “special and much-needed model,” especially for girls who are often reluctant to seek rehabilitation. He said the Ministry has already established three rehabilitation centres since 2024 and has rehabilitated about 400 young people nationwide.

He emphasized that girls account for only about 10% of those rehabilitated so far, even though the impact of drug abuse on them is often more severe. “It affects their reproductive health and exposes them to sexual and gender-based violence,” he said.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), represented by Samuel Dugba, praised Caritas Freetown as the first faith-based organization to construct a full rehabilitation centre from scratch within a year. He confirmed that the agency, which is mandated by law to inspect and approve treatment centres, had assessed and approved the facility for meeting national standards.

Samuel Dugba, however, urged Caritas to expand its prevention focus to include family-based interventions. “Many victims of drug abuse lack basic one-on-one engagement with parents who are often too busy. Families must be educated on their responsibility to care for their children,” he said.

One of the most emotional moments of the event came from a young woman identified as Jennifer Conteh, a Kush victim, who shared her personal testimony. “I was 15 years old when I got hooked on this drug and ran away from home. Kush has ruined my life. I was a bright young girl with high hopes for the future but I dropped out of school adding that her addiction to Kush has caused her to miss her menstrual cycle for two years stressing that “the urge to smoke is so strong I can’t resist it.”

She further narrated how addiction pushed her into prostitution, where she was frequently assaulted without pay. Explaining with tears, she said she desperately wants to stop because she feels trapped and cannot continue living that way.

Delivering the keynote address, the National Coordinator of the Task Force on Drug and Substance Abuse, Professor Foday Sahr, described the Kush epidemic as “the most urgent public health crisis of our generation.” He cited alarming statistics, indicating that substance abuse cases at the Kissy Psychiatric Hospital rose from 222 in 2020 to 2,955 in 2023 which is about 1,200% increase. Cases involving Kush alone surged by 3,868% within the same period.

Professor Foday Sahr explained that Kush is a dangerous cocktail primarily containing nitazine, which is a highly addictive, synthetic opioid, mixed with levamisole, tramadol and other unpredictable substances. Its effects include respiratory failure, neurological damage and death, while also increasing crime, school dropouts and family breakdowns.

He stressed that West Africa has become a major hotspot for opioid trafficking with Sierra Leone vulnerable due to its geographic and economic position. The Task Force, he said, is implementing a whole-of-Government and whole-of-society approach involving risk communication, social support, law enforcement, prevention and rehabilitation.

He added that detoxification alone is not enough and that centres like the one opened by Caritas must provide long-term comprehensive restoration, medical care, trauma counselling, family reconciliation, vocational skills, nutrition support and spiritual guidance. “There is no quick solution to rehabilitation,” he said, warning that the success of the centre will depend on sustained funding, qualified staff and patience.

The inauguration was attended by Government officials, mental health experts, anti-drug agencies, Civil Society Organisations, and community stakeholders. The ceremony concluded with a pledge from partners and Government representatives to continue supporting drug rehabilitation efforts across Sierra Leone as the nation continues its fight against Kush.