YOLANDE FORDE is no longer manager of the National Council on Substance Abuse (NCSA). Forde, a criminologist for 22 years, told the DAILY?NATION she had opted to move on to pursue other interests now that her three-year stint with the NCSA had ended.
“The time has come to move on. I have a number of professional interests that I am already pursuing,” said Forde, who spent her last day in office on January 9.
Her achievements include the National Development Anti-drug Plan which is nearing completion, and the relaunch of the Barbados Drug Information Network.
Under Forde’s tenure, the NCSA helped prepare the groundwork for the Drug Treatment Court, which is expected to be established soon.
“The Drug Treatment Court is a mechanism for effectively dealing with drug dependent criminal offenders and I am happy that we are moving in that direction,” she said.
Forde was also instrumental in the formation of PROCCER, a regional training and certification programme that was held here in 2011, attracting 16 countries from English- and Spanish-speaking countries.
The 48-year-old is the second manager to part ways with the NCSA in recent times, the first being Tessa Chaderton-Shaw in 2010, whose tenure came to a hasty and bitter end.
Chaderton-Shaw, 50, who was a key figure in the fight against illicit drugs, tobacco and alcohol for more than a decade, served 13 years at the NCSA but, according to her, the last 18 months of that stint were a “nightmare”. (MK)
