Background and objectives
Harm reduction funding is in crisis in many countries, while vast amounts are spent on the war on drugs. Harm Reduction International (HRI) investigated international financial flows for punitive drug control in low- and middle-income countries, with particular attention to U.S. government funding.

Methodology
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Creditor Reporting System data on interventions coded to ‘narcotics control’ between 2012 – 2024 were analysed. Annual National Drug Control Budgets and wider U.S. government data between 2015-2024 were analysed, and expert interviews conducted to inform case studies on U.S. punitive drug control funding in the Philippines, Colombia and Mexico.

Findings
Over USD 974 million in development assistance budgets was spent on ‘narcotics control’ between 2012-2021, including USD 70 million in sixteen countries with the death penalty for drug-related offences. Almost USD 13 billion of U.S. taxpayer money was spent on ‘counternarcotics’ activities internationally since 2015, through various government departments and budgets. This is more than the U.S. government spent on primary education or water supply and sanitation in low- and middle-income countries in the same period.

Implications
Wealthy governments, led by the U.S. significantly influence drug policy around the world, perpetuating harmful punitive approaches that disproportionately affect marginalised populations. Consequences include mass incarceration, death sentences, poor farmers’ livelihoods destroyed, rights violated by forced treatment programmes, and barriers to health care. Drug policy should be decolonised. Donors and governments should divest from punitive approaches and invest in approaches rooted in community, health and justice, including harm reduction.