The Ministry of Justice and the law created the system of early alerts (SAT) of Colombia, in order to monitor and alert promptly the emergence of NPS and changes in patterns of drug use, as part of the functions of the Observatory of drugs of Colombia. The SAT is comprised of the national police, the Office of the Attorney-General, the National Institute of Legal Medicine and forensic sciences, the Ministry of health and Social protection, the National Narcotics Fund, the National University of Colombia, the CES University, Technological University of Pereira and the Universidad Luis Amigó, among other institutions. The objective is to inform the authorities to strengthen controls and to communicate to the community in general in order to prevent or reduce the risks associated with the use of these drugs.

At the national level, the most frequent NPS are the phenethylamines (14), with the NBOMe series (7) as the protagonist. Another trend that stands out is the presence of multiple stimulants where, in addition to some phenethylamines (3), the synthetic catinonas (7) include the market to supplant some of the substances such as cocaine, MDMA, or Ecstasy.

In addition to the NPS early warning system monitors emerging drugs, involving changes in the substances or consumption patterns. Thus, in February 2017, SAT reported on the findings in the purity and adulterants of heroin consumed in several cities of the country and the high concentration of THC in marijuana circulating in the illicit drug market.