Exactly one year ago today, we became the European Union Drugs Agency (EUDA) and embarked on our new mission to strengthen EU preparedness on drugs. Building on the work of the EMCDDA, and with a more proactive mandate, we set off to support the EU and its Member States in addressing emerging drug issues in an ever-changing world. Our work contributes to making Europe's streets safer and to saving lives. Our motto — 'Acting today, anticipating tomorrow'.
In our role, we help policymakers anticipate and respond effectively to drug-related threats. We issue health and security alerts and risk communications, share knowledge and recommend evidence-based policies and actions to address problems efficiently.
This first year has been one of many milestones. Among our achievements in these 12 months as the EUDA, we have:
- Established the European Drug Alert System
- Set up a European network of forensic and toxicological laboratories
- Strengthened the Early Warning System on new substances
- Organised the first European conference on drug-related violence, issued a call to action and launched the Safe futures project
- Issued a call to action on new synthetic opioids
- Supported Member States with our first pilot threat assessment on highly potent synthetic opioids in the Baltic region
- Expanded our foresight work allowing us to envision possible scenarios to help our stakeholders make forward-thinking decisions
- Adopted a new brand identity and communication strategy
- Adopted a new international cooperation framework
- Worked closely with our partners to develop new products and services (such as a cannabis policy toolkit)
- Helped shape evidence-based drug policies across Europe
Transforming from the EMCDDA into the EUDA marked the most significant organisational shift in the agency to date. To rise to this challenge, we accelerated our business transformation to build the capabilities needed to deliver innovative, future-oriented services while providing core monitoring services to support EU drug policy.
With a renewed baseline vision of being ‘your European Union Drugs Agency’, we enter our second year with a clear commitment to lead, innovate and partner in tackling drug-related challenges — for a healthier, safer and more resilient Europe.
