[Prevalence of cannabis use among students in Dakar]

Cannabis (Cannabis sativa) is the most frequently used drug worldwide. It has multiple dangers, related to its power to involve abuse and dependency phenomena and to their social implications. Our study, which was carried out on a representative sample of 446 students living on the Dakar campus, aimed at measuring the prevalence of Cannabis use and at describing the main factors associated with it. We found a prevalence rate of 19.7%. Cannabis use starts relatively early, around 16-17 years. Young users are generally initiated by a close friend or relative and are motivated by curiosity for their first experience. The fact of having a grant or not and the field of study have no influence on the use of cannabis. On the other hand, religion might play a determining role, Christians seeming to be more affected than Moslems (p = 0.026). A similar prevalence among students has been noted in Kenya, but the rate is definitely lower than those found in developed countries. The identification of cannabis use predictors would make it possible to consider interesting prevention perspectives based on targeted education and on a more adequate legislation. .