CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1     Background of the Study

Drug abuse among Nigerian youth has been a scourge to the overall sustainable development of the nation. Substance abuse is a serious issue; a global and international issue particularly in developing countries like Nigeria. Drug abuse is also a major public health, social and individual problem and is seen as an aggravating factor for economic crises; hence, for Nigeria’s poverty status. While youth are supposed to be the major agent of change and development, some of them have been destroyed by drug abuse (rendering them unproductive). Drug abuse has become a global concern in Nigeria because of its effect on youth and the nation as a whole. Drug abuse has a negative impact on the education of undergraduates in different universities across the globe. The overall health of the user is affected negatively and behaviours associated with drug abuse predispose the abuser to crime and contagious diseases including HIV/AIDS (Center for Disease Control, 2000).

Educational stakeholders like parents, teachers and the society at large are worried over the prevalence of drug abuse and its causes and consequences on the undergraduates of the University of Ilorin in Kwara State. Drugs are produced for a variety of different reasons including those associated with ensuring a state of wellbeing, curing illness, and sustaining mental and physical stability. Modern medical substances commonly known as ‘medicine’ (many derived from plants), do not constitute any danger. If properly administered, drugs can assist human beings in many positive ways. The term ‘drug’ refers to “any substance, when taken into a living organism, limits ill-health”, however if drugs are abused, they can become very “destructive to the individual and to society at large”.

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