João Castel-Branco Goulão is the Portuguese National Drugs Coordinator, Director General of the Intervention on Addictive Behaviours and Dependencies General Directorate and since January 2010 Chairman of the European Monitoring Centre on Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA). He was Chairman of the Institute on Drugs and Drug Addiction (2005-2012), Head of the national focal point in the EMCDDA's REITOX network, member of the EMCDDA Board since 2005 and previously served on the European agency's Scientific Committee (1997–2002).
A medical doctor by profession, Dr. Goulão has over 20 years' experience regarding drug-related issues, working in this field since 1987 as general practitioner and since then all his professional life has been devoted to drugs and health. He was also a member of the Portuguese Committee which, in 1999, prepared the report on which the first Portuguese Drug Strategy, which included decriminalisation, was based.
At international level, he has a long experience in this field, not only at the European level, but also in the United Nations context.
