A health worker draws blood from a patient at the Care and Support Center (CASA) in Abidjan on August 26, 2025. In recent years, this West African coastal country has become a transit country for international trafficking of heroin, cocaine, and prescription drugs.
Ivory Coast has not opted for an all-out repressive approach: a 2022 law reduced sentences for drug users, from one to three months in prison instead of one to five years previously.
At the Addiction Care and Support Center (CASA), around twenty users are welcomed daily to rest, wash, and benefit from free, tailored social, medical, and psychological support. (Photo by Issouf SANOGO / AFP)