To tackle the alarming rise in drug and alcohol abuse among young people, Lesotho’s Ministry of Health has signed an agreement with a local youth group to establish a national rehabilitation centre, the first of its kind in years.
Health Minister Selibe Mochoboroane announced the initiative on Wednesday during a youth engagement forum with Prime Minister Ntsokoane Matekane, themed “Collective Contributions to Curb Unemployment.” The project will be spearheaded by a youth group operating under the Prime Minister’s Sebabatso youth empowerment programme.
While the name of the partnering group remains undisclosed, Minister Mochoboroane confirmed the government’s full commitment, revealing that the Ministries of Health and Finance will reallocate two percent of the budgets from all other ministries to provide subvention funding for the rehabilitation centre.
Prime Minister Matekane, addressing hundreds of young people at the event, passionately decried the devastating impact of substance abuse: “What concerns us deeply is that young people are using alcohol and drugs. These are dangerous issues, and they bring terrible consequences, not just for individuals, but for the whole country.”
He called on the youth to take charge of their future:
“Let us quit alcohol and drugs. Let us become responsible young people who are prepared to lead this country tomorrow.”
The Prime Minister commended the youth for their initiative, confirming that he had instructed the Health Ministry to move quickly on the project.
“I have been informed that youth from across the country have already signed a cooperation agreement with the Ministry of Health to establish a national drug and alcohol abuse rehabilitation centre.”
Minister Mochoboroane has been vocal about the growing drug crisis since 2024, repeatedly advocating for the revival of the now-defunct Blue Cross Society Lesotho rehabilitation centre in Thaba-Bosiu.
The closure of the Blue Cross facility several years ago, following a protracted funding dispute with the Ministry of Health, left Lesotho with no operational rehabilitation centres, public, private, or church-run.
The fallout between the Ministry and the Blue Cross Society stemmed from a 2015 dispute over financial transparency. The Ministry sought to audit the organisation and oversee its fund allocation, a move the Blue Cross resisted, citing its operational independence. The standoff has remained unresolved.
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