UNODC - UN Office on Drugs and Crime

Under the New Urban Agenda, UNODC committed to pursue sustainable urban development in an integrated and coordinated manner at the global, regional, national, subnational and local levels, with the participation of all relevant actors. With this objective, UNODC has developed the Urban Safety Governance approach, which contributes to the implementation and localization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and targets, including Goal 11 on making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. UNODC works closely with UN-Habitat on the Urban Safety Governance initiative and established an internal focal point responsible for sustainable urban development as a continuation of the transformative, universal, and integrated sustainable development agenda.

The Urban Safety Governance initiative aims at building the capacity of government officials, with local and national policymakers and experts to agree upon a monitoring framework and reporting cycle. A strategy for interaction with national counterparts is developed in order to achieve national buy-in and financing, as required. This includes the design of a strategy for funding related implementation of programmatic and policy responses to a sustainable urban agenda.

To monitor and evaluate the impact of activities carried out under the Urban Safety Governance initiative, UNODC is developing a Matrix of Indicators, understanding the violence phenomenon in a socio-territorial approach, improving the transparency of data as a tool for progress towards equity and spatial integration.

Training national and local counterparts to measure and monitor implementation in Mathare, Kenya

Under this initiative in Kenya, a training for national and local counterparts was conducted on using standardized tools and analytical methods to measure and evaluate progress in the implementation of policies and programmes of urban agendas during the community launch of the report held in Mathare. In this session, participants were taken through on the research process used during the assessment conducted in the community and had the opportunity to critically analyse the findings and recommendations in relation to existing policies and programmes. The inputs and insights derived from that session formed the basis of discussions towards the formation of a post -assessment workplan that included participation from the residents of Mathare, the community-based organizations and the local authorities.

Recognizing the importance of engaging at the national and local level to achieve sustainable urban development, in the Strategy 2021-2025, UNODC has incorporated under the mandate area of Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Outcome 2, on community- and knowledge-based crime prevention, including activities that aim to develop and implement evidence-based and comprehensive national and local crime prevention strategies. This directly feeds into the safety and security aspects of the Urban Agenda.

Finally, in Declarations adopted at the 13th and 14th Crime Congress as well as in Resolutions adopted in the framework of the CCPCJ/ECOSOC (e.g. E/2021/30), Member States expressed their commitment to implementing comprehensive policies and programmes that foster socioeconomic development, with a focus on the prevention of crime, including urban crime, and violence.

A new global initiative, UNODCity, aims to make urban environments safe, inclusive and resilient by addressing the multi-causal factors of violence, crime and insecurity. To support policymakers in identifying nodes or levers that could promote change and build resilience, the project proposes a strategic approach to urban safety and good governance based on an understanding of how a wider set of localized risk factors, including poor urban planning and environmental degradation, intersect with global threats creating conditions of insecurity.  Such approach promotes multi-stakeholder engagement and appropriate management and allocation of resources across a city and focuses on building resilience of communities.

In partnership with local and national counterparts, throughout 2020 and 2021 UNODC has piloted this framework, by conducting Urban Safety Governance Assessments in four urban areas: Mathare in Nairobi, Kenya, Iztapalapa in Mexico City, Mexico, Chilanzar in Tashkent, Uzbekistan and St. Michael and Christ Church in Barbados. 

Aspects of the New Urban Agenda supported by UNODCity

This global initiative directly contributes to the implementation of the New Urban Agenda in several way, including by:

• Recognizing the leading role of national Governments, as well as the important contributions of subnational and local governments, civil society and other relevant stakeholders
• Adopting people-centred, age- and gender- integrated approaches to urban development, including by leveraging partnerships to develop and implement urban policies at the appropriate level
• Encouraging the effective participation and collaboration of all relevant stakeholders, including, but not limited to local governments, the private sector and civil society
• Contributing to providing public spaces that are free from crime and violence
• Promoting multi-stakeholder partnerships

UNODCity promotes the effective implementation of the New Urban Agenda by supporting local stakeholders in identifying priority issues and developing evidence-based policy recommendations to improve urban safety and good governance. To do so, UNODC harnesses its extensive experience and knowledge in capacity building for institutional resilience, crime prevention and criminal justice by providing technical assistance to strengthen institutional capacities for the production of better data to support evidence-based policymaking. Through the Urban Safety Governance Approach, local authorities are supported in enhancing capacities to collect, analyse and utilize multiple sources of data for formulation of policies aimed at fostering safety, good governance and inclusion.

A participatory approach to urban policy development and implementation is key to build solid structures for good governance and creating inclusive, resilient and safe societies. Therefore, through the provision of technical tools and advisory services, the Office supported cities in Latin America, Central Asia and Africa in conducting local safety audits to generate information on crime, violence, victimization and related risk factors, combining quantitative and qualitative data, including data collected in focus group discussions with community stakeholders. The data collected and analysed subsequently informed the development of local safety and crime prevention action plans and interventions by local governance structures that also reflect the specific safety needs of women.

Within the scope of the ongoing cooperation project in the State of Pernambuco, in Northeast Brazil, UNODC has develop the Logical Framework for Prevention to help local authorities concentrate financial efforts in most violent cities, using territorial and statistical data and intelligence. As a result, the local prevention policy was redesigned and programmes redirected to enhance safety and security, creating public spaces favouring social and intergenerational interaction.