Almost 10 percent of the Serbian population has enjoyed narcotics in some form, the head of an addiction treatment hospital warned on Friday.

Psychiatrist Mira Kovacevic, said that eight percent of the population have used drugs and added that 99 percent of users have come into contact with marijuana. Kovacevic is CEO of the Special Hospital for Addictions and a member of the government commission combatting drug addiction in schools.

“Marijuana is the first psychoactive substance that young people come into contact with. Festivals, parties and clubs are the places where combining alcohol with marijuana and ecstasy is popular,” the doctor told Serbian state TV (RTS).

According to the statistics she quoted, there are more than 1,000 heroin addicts undergoing treatment in the Belgrade region and between 6,000 and 8,000 addicts undergoing treatment in all of Serbia.

Kovacevic said the government should take steps to lower the offer and demand for drugs on the streets.

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