Becoming a Training Provider

To enhance the worldwide prevention, treatment, and recovery support workforce, select international education and training providers are encouraged to offer professional development and continuing education in their countries and regions.

Our goal when providing Universal Curricula (UC) materials to select Training and Education Providers worldwide is to ensure:

  • People working in prevention, treatment, and recovery support are offered professional and continuing education training that provides the requisite skills for their professional development.
  • All professionals worldwide have access to professional training based on current, evidence-based materials that meet international standards 
  • More effective prevention, treatment, and recovery support programs worldwide as a result of improved training.

Who can be a Training Provider?

Any organization that meets certain criteria and wishes to provide training in the drug demand reduction field can become a Training Provider. They may include the following:

  1. Training organizations
  2. Colleges and universities
  3. Organizations working in the field of drug demand reduction that conduct training events (Civil Society) (e.g. charitable or for-profit treatment centers and hospitals)
  4. Government agencies 

After review, a requesting organization can be either a:

  • Training Materials Recipient (TMR): an approved individual or non-governmental organization that receives the Universal Curricula training materials but trains only its own internal staff or students.
  • Training Organization (TO): an approved non-governmental organization that trains throughout their region or creates trainings available to the public.
  • Education Provider (EP): Education institutions including universities, two-year schools, professional schools, and professional continuing education bodies that wish to use the materials directly for training or for the development of their own courses in related fields.  
  • Government Training Partner (GTP):  Government ministries and institutions that wish to use the materials to train their own staff or national professionals.

Each organization will have a coordinator assigned based on regional location.

Some of the benefits gained by becoming a Training Provider include:
  • The provider status will identify a training program as meeting the internationally approved standards of education developed for those involved in substance use disorder treatment and prevention. 
  • A listing in the ISSUP Directory of Approved Training and Education Providers which is published online;
  • Opportunities to collaborate with co-hosting and/or cost-sharing initiatives with Colombo Plan trainings. 
  • The opportunity to post your training events on the ISSUP Website;
  • The use of GCCC’s ICAP logo on your website and/or in your publications.

In addition, program participants are assured that the education hours provided will be accepted towards many credentialing and/or certification designations. While there are many credentialing/certification bodies, the Global Centre for Credentialing and Certification (GCCC) provides an international standard and the hours will be accepted for initial International Certified Addiction Professional (ICAP) certification requirements or as continuing education towards renewal.  GCCC currently operates in 62 countries but is constantly expanding.  All Training Providers are encouraged to prepare their students to work toward a credential and/or certification. 

All those individuals and organizations undertaking Universal Curricula and related training will be required to provide training data to ISSUP for the purpose of program evaluation.  This data will be shared with the Colombo Plan and the U.S.  Department of State that funds the development of the Universal Curricula.  Data will only be posted in the aggregate.

For further information contact your regional training provider coordinator:

Non-governmental organizations:

  • South and East Asia; Middle East:
    Dr. Josephine Choong, Colombo Plan: jochoong [dot] leankeow [at] colombo-plan [dot] org (jochoong[dot]leankeow[at]colombo-plan[dot]org)
  • Europe; Central Asia:
    Gulmira Suleymanova, Colombo Plan: gulmira [dot] suleymanova [at] colombo-plan [dot] org (gulmira[dot]suleymanova[at]colombo-plan[dot]org)
  • Africa:
    George Murimi, Colombo Plan: george [dot] murimi [at] colombo-plan [dot] org (george[dot]murimi[at]colombo-plan[dot]org)
  • Latin America; Caribbean:
    Jo Rivas, Colombo Plan: jo [dot] rivas [at] colombo-plan [dot] org (jo[dot]rivas[at]colombo-plan[dot]org)
  • Canada and United States:
    Dr. Josephine Choong, Colombo Plan: jochoong [dot] leankeow [at] colombo-plan [dot] org (jochoong[dot]leankeow[at]colombo-plan[dot]org)

Government officials:

  • South and East Asia; Middle East:
    Dr. Josephine Choong, Colombo Plan: jochoong [dot] leankeow [at] colombo-plan [dot] org (jochoong[dot]leankeow[at]colombo-plan[dot]org)
  • Europe; Central Asia:
    Gulmira Suleymanova, Colombo Plan: gulmira [dot] suleymanova [at] colombo-plan [dot] org (gulmira[dot]suleymanova[at]colombo-plan[dot]org)
  • Africa:
    George Murimi, Colombo Plan: george [dot] murimi [at] colombo-plan [dot] org (george[dot]murimi[at]colombo-plan[dot]org)
  • Latin America; Caribbean:
    Jimena Kawalwaski, CICAD: Jkalawksi [at] oas [dot] org (cc: mariano.montenegro%40colombo-plan.org) (Jkalawksi[at]oas[dot]org); and
    Mariano Montenegro, Colombo Plan: mariano [dot] montenegro [at] colombo-plan [dot] org (cc: Jkalawksi%40oas.org) (mariano[dot]montenegro[at]colombo-plan[dot]org)
  • Canada and United States:
    Dr. Josephine Choong, Colombo Plan: jochoong [dot] leankeow [at] colombo-plan [dot] org (jochoong[dot]leankeow[at]colombo-plan[dot]org)

All universities and educational institutions:  

Another strategy that is being used to disseminate the UC and related curricula is through the university system where universities integrate the curricula into an existing course or a new course that can be offered at the undergraduate, postgraduate and graduate level. These education providers are required to demonstrate the relevance of their course by the description of the course, goals and objectives, the outline of the training course content and how the course relates to the Universal and related curricula. 

  • For more information contact:
    Carly Searcy, ICUDDR, searcyc [at] icuddr [dot] org