Substance dependence is a major problem Worldwide, Pakistan being no exception. The drugs commonly used in Pakistan are Cannabis, Opium, Alcohol, Codeine, Heroin and many Tranquilizers. United Nations Office for Drug and Crime (UNODC, 2013) data revealed that about 6.7 million substance dependents with age range of 15-64 found in Pakistan. One in every 27 persons in Pakistan is using drugs while nearly 25% of the youth population is involved in some form of drug abuse in Pakistan, opiate users are about 1% which is also very high prevalence. Drug abuse is most prevalent in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa where 11% of the population uses drugs, followed by Sindh where 6.5% of the population is drug addict. In Baluchistan, almost 5% population uses drugs while in Punjab, 4.8% of the population is drug addict. Cannabis (Chars) is the most commonly used drug in Pakistan; with Almost 5.8% of the adult population is addict of cannabis. Opiates namely opium and heroin are used by almost 1% of overall drug users .

There are 420,000 people who inject drugs in Pakistan, which represents 0.4% population. Non-medical use of tranquilizers and sedatives is higher among women. Young people are more susceptible to drug use.

They often talk about the "highs" but may not be aware of the many "lows". The widespread availability of drugs in Pakistan is making it easy for them to be addicts. Drug addiction among the youth is killing them morally and socially as well psychologically and even physically. The reason why the number of drug addicted people especially youth is increasing alarmingly in Pakistan is that the drug lobbys in the country are fully backed and supported by the powerful and the wealthy who have got ample influence. Moreover, apparently, police and drug mafia are colluding. Moreover, easy availability of narcotics and psychological effects of violence are also playing part. Children who have suffered violence in their life or who have undergone a traumatic experience turn to drugs to forget about the loss.