Schools drug research freeze after IDB survey fallout blocks data

Government efforts to track drug use among Barbadian schoolchildren have been stalled for more than three years, after fallout from the controversial 2022 Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) survey left the National Council on Substance Abuse (NCSA) unable to conduct new research in schools, Parliament heard on Tuesday. 

The issue surfaced as the House of Assembly continued the 2026–27 Estimates for education, with Attorney General Wilfred Abrahams warning that the impasse has effectively blocked the NCSA from accessing schools.

Abrahams, who previously served as Minister of Home Affairs, under whose remit the NCSA falls, said the paralysis followed “the highly publicised survey that was done some time ago”.

He told the House: “After the highly publicised survey that was done some time ago there seemed to have been a reluctance of the Ministry of Education to embark upon any surveyors at all. And that has crippled a number of critical surveys.”

The IDB survey was one of the most contentious episodes in recent education developments. In October 2022, Barbados TODAY broke the story after several disgruntled parents reported that their first-form children had been given what was described as a computer science pre-test without their knowledge. The exercise, administered under the auspices of the Inter-American Development Bank, turned out to be a questionnaire containing almost 300 questions.

More than 700 first-form students at five secondary schools across the island completed the instrument, which included questions on sexuality, gender identity and substance abuse, as well as personal information about their parents. The revelation triggered national debate and prompted tighter oversight of research in schools.

Against that background, Abrahams said the NCSA’s work has suffered tremendously.

“The NCSA is accustomed to doing surveys to inform its policies in relation to drug treatment, early warning systems, so they can detect new and emerging drugs that are in use in Barbados,” he said.

He added that since the 2022 controversy, “they have hit a sticking point with the Ministry of Education since”. 

The attorney general stressed that the consequences extend beyond bureaucracy.

“They need to know from the children, are you using drugs, what drugs are you using? This is not to call out a child. But this is so we know what is there and what programmes can be specifically designed to address persons of the school age.”

He cautioned that safeguards must not produce paralysis.

Minister of Education Transformation Chad Blackman responded by defending the strengthened framework while acknowledging the importance of reliable data.

Blackman said: “We will ensure that that is done, of course, subject to the necessary frameworks and protocols, strictest frameworks and protocols to first of all ensure the safety of our children and to ensure that they’re not put in any way that is jeopardised or causing harm, physical, mental, anything.”

“Without the relevant data, without the relevant information, we can’t make well informed interventions and strategies.”

Chief Education Officer Dr Ramona Archer-Bradshaw outlined the revised process now governing research in schools, which she said emerged in response to the 2022 episode.

“With regard to research, the ministry has established very clear protocols,” she said. “We have created an education research committee comprising experts in research from within the Ministry of Education.”

Under the current regime, all survey instruments must first be screened by that committee before permission is granted. Researchers must then seek approval from principals, who conduct an additional review.

Dr Archer-Bradshaw said: “These protocols were not in place before because we took it for granted that persons will be ethical and that the instruments that were approved by the ministry or that are approved by the ministry will be used within the school. We can no longer take that for granted. So this is the reason we have this tiered approach.”

She stressed that compliance with the Data Protection Act also guides the process, noting consultations with the Data Protection Commissioner and the requirement for parental consent in certain cases.

“All research, all intention of doing research must come through the Ministry of Education Transformation in order for it to be screened to ensure that the instruments that are being used will not cause any harm to our children.”

While encouraging dialogue with the NCSA, she maintained that “the protocols are there to be followed” and “we cannot overstep those”.