Alcohol abuse accounted for more than half of the 2400 people who sought help from The Western Region Alcohol and Drug (WRAD) Centre in 2009/10, an increase of 200 clients than the previous year.

The WRAD Centre annual report, released today, shows 57 per cent of attendances at the service were for alcohol related problems followed by cannabis, which accounts for 29 per cent of WRAD clients.

Abuse of prescription medication is also a growing problem.

Men made up the majority of the centre's client list, with those aged 21 to 39 the most represented.

WRAD director Geoff Soma said while he was pleased to see increased demand for services as more people realised they needed help for their addiction, the funding of treatment services was inadequate.

"Balancing the funding challenges consumes time and energy and the government's contribution towards alcohol and drugs remains simply not good enough," he said.

"We have a small window of opportunity to assist people with their drug and alcohol problem.

"We'd like to respond more promptly, at the moment it's not possible for us to do that."

Mr Soma said alcohol abuse continued to cause the most social, health and economic harm in the community with deaths, hospitalisation and serious health issues often the result of prolonged substance abuse.

The annual report also revealed 60 per cent of clients were unemployed, a statistic Mr Soma believes compounds the issues confronting people with drug and alcohol problems.

"Unemployment is a huge barrier for people trying to get their lives back on track," he said.

"In many cases it's a catch 22 situation; people without gainful employment can find it more difficult to overcome their problems and stabilize in the community."

Those who do managed to overcome addiction are also more likely to relapse if they are unable to find steady employment, Mr Soma added.

Only 23 per cent of WRAD clients are employed, and more than 20 per cent of them live alone.

Mr Soma said through philanthropic trusts WRAD was able to offer services over and above what they were funded for by the state government.

"Drugs and alcohol disappears in the whole (state government) health budget," he said.

"It's something that the government needs to address; alcohol and drugs runs across other areas, it's endemic in the education system, most of our clients are unemployed and many end up in the criminal and justice system.

"With no significant investment, we'll continue to play catch up."

Mr Soma said alcohol and drugs cost Victoria an estimated $5 billion a year but the investment from the state government in support services is only about $130 million.

"The numbers don't add up," he said.

"You can't hope to effect change with that little investment."