More than 60% of admissions in mental health institutions can be traced to drug and illegal substance abuse.
This emerged during a workshop on drug policy and harm reduction held in the capital on Friday.
Zimbabwe Civil Liberties and Drug Networks director Wilson Box said laws against drug abuse needed to be re-looked to fight the vice more effectively.
“Let us have a situation or law which promotes inclusivity, an effective drug policy that looks at human rights,” Box said.
“Current laws are punitive to drug users,” he said.
Parliamentary portfolio committee on health and child care chairperson Daniel Molokele urged parliamentarians to push for progressive legislation.
“We need to come up with other ways of dealing with the drug and substance use scourge,” he said.