Bolivia has signed an agreement with the US and Brazil to help reduce the production of illegal cocaine. The US and Brazil will provide technical assistance, including satellite monitoring of coca crops.

Ricardo Soberon, the reformist head of DEVIDA, the Peruvian drug agency, has been fired and replaced. Soberon made waves last August when he implemented a temporary ban on forced eradication of coca plants, taking the US Embassy by surprise, but that was soon reversed on the orders of his boss, Interior Minister Oscar Valdes.

The Brazilian government launched a war on what it called a "crack epidemic", including medical treatment for dependent users and a crackdown on trafficking, particularly in border areas.

The Global Drug Survey is an anonymous online survey that addresses how people are using illegal drugs as well as alcohol, tobacco and prescription medications. It combines basic information on what drugs people use, how often they take them, and the medical, social and legal consequences of drug use.

In a bid to increase the efficiency and responsiveness of Paraguay in tackling the combined threats of illicit drugs, trafficking and transnational organized crime, UNODC and the Government of Paraguay have launched a four-year national integrated programme to strengthen security at the national and regional levels.

For thousands of prison inmates convicted of crack cocaine charges, the prison doors will be opening early, thanks to sentencing changes easing the disparity between the penalties for possessing or distributing crack vs. powder cocaine.