abuse in the community.

But the recent survey of students conducted by the National Drug Commission is just that -- its results suggest that fewer students are using alcohol, tobacco or marijuana than they were in 1994.

That does not mean anyone should start declaring that the so-called war against drugs is over. The numbers using all three substances are still unacceptably high and a huge amount of work still needs to be done. This is a small victory, but a victory nonetheless.

Most importantly, the results -- although they are more than a year old -- suggest that anti-drugs education programmes are working among students.

"Current users'' of marijuana number 14.1 percent, down from 15.1 percent in 1994, but up from 9.7 percent in 1991. The decline among current users of alcohol is the most striking, falling from 52.9 percent to 26.3 percent between 1991 and 1997. Tobacco use also fell slightly, from 15.1 percent to 14.1 percent between 1994 and 1997.

It cannot be said that use has declined because of lack of availability or cuts in supply. There is evidence that students have easy access to all three substances.

Steps can be taken to make all three substances less available. Some already have; since the survey took place in 1997, drugs' users and sellers who congregate around schools and other places where young people gather are being punished far more severely and this could help reduce supply.

There is more that can be done. Bars and liquor stores could be required to seek identification to prevent under-age purchases of alcohol and cigarette machines could be banned from areas where young people congregate as well.

Last summer, a 15-year-old Royal Gazette junior reporter was able to buy cigarettes from more than 20 stores without being asked for identification, showing that shops - are careless about ensuring their policies on not serving underage customers are enforced.

Overall, the survey's results should give ammunition to those who argue that education and prevention programmes are the best way to reduce drug abuse.

NDC chief executive officer Dr. Derrick Binns has noted that the decision to experiment with drugs is an individual one. The reality is that some young people will always experiment. But education can reduce the number of experimenters and the number of people who choose to continue to use a drug until it becomes an addiction.

Now that there is at least some evidence that effective education campaigns work, the NDC and related agencies should be given the resources to increase their efforts while businesses selling to under-age minors need to be pressured to ensure that their policies are being maintained. That should reduce both supply and demand.