Concurrent 5B: Stimulant use disorders – new treatments and future directions
Tracks
Track 2
| Thursday, October 16, 2025 |
| 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM |
| Hall B |
Details
This session will give attendees an overview of recently completed research and provide an update on current and upcoming clinical trials from local and international researchers, discussing potential future pharmacotherapeutic options for people who use stimulants. Attendees will hear about the current state of stimulant use and treatment in South Africa, as well as the impact of stimulant use globally, and the current work of the UNODC addressing stimulant use and harm reduction globally. This will be followed by a lived experience perspective of supporting people who use stimulants through treatment as an informed journey towards person centred outcomes and positive change, discussing how medication, psychosocial support, and community mobilisation can all help build the political 2 capital of people who use stimulant drugs so they can set their treatment goals and shape their care plan. New and upcoming research into medications that might help people reduce or cease their stimulant use will be presented, and the talks will conclude with a presentation of the lived experience of being a woman and mother using methamphetamine in South Africa and the impact of stigma and harm reduction. The session will end with an interactive discussion, where the audience will be invited to provide their thoughts and opinions surrounding future directions in stimulant treatment, overcoming barriers and what meaningful treatment outcomes look like to them.
Speaker
Dr Liam Acheson
Postdoctoral Fellow
National Centre for Clinical Research on Emerging Drugs
Introduction
4:00 PM - 4:05 PMBiography
Associate Professor Nadine Harker
Deputy Director/senior Specialist Scientist
Mental Health, Alcohol, Susbtance Use and Tobacco Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council
Stimulant Use and Treatment in South Africa
4:05 PM - 4:15 PMBiography
Mr Gunasekaran Rengaswamy
Regional Adviser, HIV/AIDS Prevention And Care, Southern Africa
UNODC
Global Context of Stimulant Use and Harm Reduction
4:15 PM - 4:25 PMBiography
Gunasekaran Rengaswamy, currently working as Regional Adviser, HIV/AIDS Prevention and Care, Southern Africa, Head of Heath Programme for the UNODC Regional Office for Southern Africa. Based in Pretoria focusing on harm reduction programming for people who use/inject drugs and people in prisons. Public health professional with a Commonwealth Fellowship and over 30 years of experience working with United Nations and other not for profit organizations. Have led and managed large projects in a multi-cultural work environment in South Asia, West Africa, and Middle East region. Focal point for prison programmes for the Southern Africa Region. Earlier worked as Regional Advisor, HIV and AIDS for two regions West Africa and South Asia and as Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice officer in Nigeria.
Mr Matthew Southwell
Managing and Technical Director
Coact Technical Support
Supporting people who use stimulant drugs to build their political health capital so they use medication and support to achieve their chosen positive change
4:25 PM - 4:35 PMBiography
Dr Liam Acheson
Postdoctoral Fellow
National Centre for Clinical Research on Emerging Drugs
New Pharmacological Treatment Options for Stimulant Use
4:35 PM - 4:45 PMBiography
Miss Charne Roberts
National Advocacy Coordinator
SANPUD
Stigma and discrimination faced by women who use meth and the need to upscale harm reduction services for stimulant use
4:45 PM - 4:55 PMBiography
Charne Roberts is the National Advocacy Coordinator at the South African Network of People Who Use Drugs, or SANPUD. A passionate human rights and harm reduction advocate, Charne works to amplify the voices of people who use drugs ensuring they are not just heard, but meaningfully included in shaping the policies that affect their lives. She is especially committed to advancing the rights of women who use drugs, challenging gender-based violence, and fighting the stigma and criminalisation that fuels exclusion. Through her leadership, Charne has helped build grassroots advocacy networks across South Africa, empowering communities with the tools, knowledge, and platforms to advocate for health, dignity, and justice. Her work is grounded in the belief that nothing about us should be without us
Dr Liam Acheson
Postdoctoral Fellow
National Centre for Clinical Research on Emerging Drugs
Panel Discussion
4:55 PM - 5:25 PMBiography
Associate Professor Nadine Harker
Deputy Director/senior Specialist Scientist
Mental Health, Alcohol, Susbtance Use and Tobacco Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council
Panel Discussion
4:55 PM - 5:25 PMBiography
Miss Charne Roberts
National Advocacy Coordinator
SANPUD
Panel Discussion
4:55 PM - 5:25 PMBiography
Charne Roberts is the National Advocacy Coordinator at the South African Network of People Who Use Drugs, or SANPUD. A passionate human rights and harm reduction advocate, Charne works to amplify the voices of people who use drugs ensuring they are not just heard, but meaningfully included in shaping the policies that affect their lives. She is especially committed to advancing the rights of women who use drugs, challenging gender-based violence, and fighting the stigma and criminalisation that fuels exclusion. Through her leadership, Charne has helped build grassroots advocacy networks across South Africa, empowering communities with the tools, knowledge, and platforms to advocate for health, dignity, and justice. Her work is grounded in the belief that nothing about us should be without us
Dr Liam Acheson
Postdoctoral Fellow
National Centre for Clinical Research on Emerging Drugs
Conclusion
5:25 PM - 5:30 PMBiography
Chairperson
Liam Acheson
Postdoctoral Fellow
National Centre for Clinical Research on Emerging Drugs
Ernesto Cortes
Director
ACEID
