Director General/Executive Director
Distinguished participants,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Allow me to begin by wishing you all a Happy New Year.
I would also like to congratulate Mr. Edelbacher on his new positions as Representative of the ACUNS Vienna Liaison Office and as the Chairperson of the Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice.
I very much welcome UNODC's long-standing cooperation with ACUNS and the Alliance, and look forward to continuing our work together.
The focus of this conference on "New Approaches for a Peaceful and more Sustainable World" is very fitting, as the international community is embarking on an ambitious new era of development cooperation this year.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development holds the potential to be truly transformative, drawing together the strands of peace, the rule of law, human rights, development and equality into a comprehensive and forward-looking framework.
Its groundbreaking global goals recognize that if we want a more secure and prosperous world, we need to promote justice and the rule of law;
That there can be no peace without sustainable development; no sustainable development without societies free from fear and violence.
That we as an international community have a responsibility to ensure that we leave no gaps for terrorists and criminals to exploit.
Many of the targets under the SDGs reflect important priorities under UNODC's mandate, including:
As the lead entity of the UN Secretariat in assisting countries to address illicit drugs, organized crime and related challenges, UNODC remains fully engaged in supporting Member States to promote health and build just, peaceful and inclusive societies, as part of overall sustainable development efforts.
This includes providing technical assistance on the ground and supporting the implementation of the international conventions on drugs, transnational organized crime and corruption, as well as the universal instruments against terrorism and UN standards and norms in crime prevention and criminal justice.
Our work also includes advancing the development of clear indicators, based on UNODC's long-standing research expertise in the areas of criminal justice, drugs and crime, to enable States to monitor global progress towards the SDGs and to foster change on the ground.
As recognized in SDG 17, partnerships are essential to realizing sustainable development outcomes.
True partnership must be based on the principle of shared responsibility, which is particularly critical in addressing the many transnational challenges we are faced with today, including illicit drug production and trafficking; human trafficking and migrant smuggling; trafficking in cultural property, natural resources, wildlife and forest products and firearms; terrorism and corruption.
For UNODC, that means continuing and deepening our cooperation with UN and other partners in support of Member States.
It also means working with civil society, which has an important role to play.
Evidence-based, consultative and participatory approaches to preventing and reducing crime must involve all sectors of society, including non-governmental organizations, academia and the private sector.
ACUNS remains a very valuable partner in raising awareness about key challenges in the areas of crime prevention and criminal justice.
This includes the critical issue of the gender-related killings of women and girls.
ACUNS Vienna has organized events in both Vienna and New York on this topic, with the participation of UNODC. And we are very pleased to note that the General Assembly adopted a new resolution in December on taking action against gender-related killing of women and girls.
Looking ahead, we have the twenty-fifth session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, as well as the eighth session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and the Protocols.
These meetings represent important opportunities to further strengthen crime prevention and criminal justice responses, and support implementation of the SDGs.
We look forward to the contributions of ACUNS and the Alliance.
Finally, I would also like to mention that Agenda 2030 comes as Member States are preparing for a very important UN General Assembly special session on the world drug problem in April.
It has been widely recognized that the challenges posed by illicit drugs have a profound impact on a number of sustainable development targets.
Ladies and gentlemen,
We have a busy year ahead of us.
I thank you for your continued support and engagement, and I wish you fruitful discussions.
Thank you.