We extend our warmest congratulations to EUDA Executive Director Alexis Goosdeel, who has been honoured with the Gold Medal of the Order of Merit of Spain’s National Plan on Drugs (Plan Nacional sobre Drogas, PNSD). Mr Goosdeel received the prestigious award today in Madrid from Under-Secretary for Health Ana María Sánchez.
The Spanish Ministry of Health officially informed the agency of this distinction, following its publication in the Boletín official del Estado (Official state bulletin) in October 2024, signed by the Minister of Health Mónica García Gómez. The commendation recognises Mr Goosdeel’s longstanding relationship with various stakeholders in the drugs field in Spain, particularly his 'excellent collaboration' with the Government Delegation for the National Plan on Drugs (Delegación del Gobierno para el Plan Nacional sobre Drogas).
Accepting the award, Mr Goosdeel said: 'Receiving the Gold Medal of the Order of Merit of the National Plan on Drugs is a great honour and a privilege, which rewards a professional and personal journey that began 40 years ago. Over the years, the Government Delegation for the National Plan on Drugs has been a beacon, a benchmark and an example for drug policy throughout the European Union. For me, it has also been a personal and professional point of reference'.
The PNSD is a government initiative created in 1985 with the aim of coordinating and strengthening the policies that, in the field of drugs, are carried out by the different public administrations and social entities in Spain. Established by the Spanish Congress of Deputies in 1995, the Order of Merit of the PNSD honours individuals and institutions — both public and private — who have demonstrated outstanding commitment and dedication in contributing to drug policy. The award has three categories: Gold, Silver and the White Cross. The Gold Medal is reserved for those who have made particularly significant contributions, or undertaken actions of exceptional importance, including efforts in prevention, treatment, reintegration, and combating drug trafficking and its consequences.
Also receiving the Gold Medal today is former prosecutor José Ramón Noreña Salto.
