Drug addiction surges in South Korea

The number of drug addicts in South Korea has surpassed 400,000 this year, equivalent to the entire population of Sejong City, according to a recent government analysis. Despite this alarming increase, half of the government-designated treatment centers for drug addiction reported no cases treated this year due to a severe shortage of medical staff and inadequate treatment infrastructure.

According to data from the Ministry of Health and Welfare obtained by The Dong-A Ilbo on Wednesday from the office of Rep. Son Seong-ok, a member of the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee, the total number of drug users in South Korea this year was estimated at 400,530. This is a 22.5 percent increase from last year's figure (329,970). Considering that Sejong City has a population of 389,443, this is the size of a large city. On the other hand, 13 out of a total of 31 treatment and protection centers that are supposed to treat drug addicts had zero cases this year as of the end of September.


이채완 기자 chaewani@donga.com