Across the Euro-Mediterranean region, partner organizations operate within a particularly complex context shaped by continuous migration flows. As key entry points to Europe, Mediterranean countries host significant numbers of young people arriving in vulnerable situations — often after long, unsafe, and fragmented migratory journeys. Upon arrival, many of them face traumatic experiences, prolonged uncertainty, economic instability, social isolation, and limited access to health and social services. These structural vulnerabilities may increase exposure to risky environments, making some young people more prone to substance use as a coping or survival mechanism.

Partner organizations consistently stress that these realities cannot be addressed through punitive or moralistic frameworks. Instead, they call for harm-reduction approaches grounded in empathy, non-judgment, and an understanding of migration as a complex process involving loss, adaptation, resilience, and multiple stressors. Within this context, professionals require shared tools, evidence-based practices, and culturally sensitive methodologies to effectively respond to emerging patterns of substance use — particularly concerning crack consumption — among young people with migratory backgrounds.