Consultative workshop on issues of substance abuse was organized by Meqomia community Development Organization with the support of Ministry of health and USAID transform, primary Health care project at Haramaya University on September 23, 2019.

In the opening ceremony, Professor Jeylan Wolyie, vice president for students and administrative affairs, and delegated by the University president, said that an addicted person cannot save others from addictions as him or her himself is burning in the fire of addiction. Addiction could bring multidimensional rescues on individuals, societies, and in the country level at large. As a result, it hurts the countries socio-economic stabilities. At this time, the number of people exposed to addiction is increasing, especially the university students as they are youth. We must, therefore, save the current students in particular and youth in general from destructive addictions if we want to have better future in our country.

Mr. Aliyas Kalayu, the Meqomia community Development Organization founder and Manager, in his turn, said that the main objective of the workshop is to create awareness about the general concepts related to different kinds of addictions and their rescues on the individual and country level. Likewise, the vision of the organization is ‘to see addiction substance and miserable ideology free and visionary generation awaked and rose’.

More than 30 participants selected from different parts of the community such as religious leaders, administrators, women and concerned University directorate members attended the workshop. In addition to the general concepts, the participants discussed on the way how to eradicate the wide spread of different kinds of addictions in the community and in the University, and presented their life experiences as an example to the workshop participants.

Lastly group photo ceremony was celebrated