The Role of UNODC in Terrorism Prevention 

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Terrorism Prevention Branch Brochure (pdf)

March 2007

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has for many years been addressing issues pertaining to international terrorism and related international cooperation. In 2002, the General Assembly approved an expanded programme of activities for the Terrorism Prevention Branch (TPB) of UNODC. The expanded programme focuses on the provision of assistance to States, upon request, in the legal and related aspects of counter-terrorism, especially for ratifying and implementing the universal legal instruments against terrorism and for strengthening the capacity of the national criminal justice systems to apply the provisions of these instruments in compliance with the principles of rule of law. In addition, the Branch's programme of work entails the provision of substantive input on related counter-terrorism issues to intergovernmental bodies, especially the Crime Commission, the Economic and Social Council, the General Assembly and the United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice. The Branch also provides specialized input on relevant counter-terrorism issues for the United Nations Secretariat wide initiatives and coordinates its activities with other entities and organizations. 

Since 2002, the General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council and the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice have reiterated the mandates (pdf) of the Terrorism Prevention Branch in providing technical assistance to counter terrorism.

The United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 60/288 of 8 September 2006, makes extensive reference to the work of UNODC, particularly its Terrorism Prevention Branch. The Strategy encourages UNODC to enhance its technical assistance. It encourages Member States to resort to the technical assistance delivered by UNODC.

UNODC possesses significant comparative advantages for delivering assistance in counter-terrorism. In particular, it combines a range of expertise in the related areas of crime prevention and criminal justice, rule of law, drug control, transnational organized crime, money laundering, corruption and related international cooperation in criminal matters with operational field-level capacity.

In pursuance of its above mandates, the Terrorism Prevention Branch seeks to respond promptly and efficiently to requests from States for assistance in the legal and related aspects of countering terrorism. 


The objective

The objective of the technical assistance activities of the Terrorism Prevention Branch is to strengthen the legal regime against terrorism. The Branch does this by providing legal advice to States on becoming parties to the universal legal instruments relat­ing to terrorism, by assisting States to incorporate their provisions into national penal codes, by providing training to criminal justice officials on the new laws and by providing other required assistance for strengthening the capacity of the national criminal justice system to implement effectively the legal regime against terrorism, in compliance with the principles of rule of law, and to participate effectively in international cooperation in criminal matters relating to terrorism. When requested, assistance is also provided in preparing the country reports to the Counter-Terrorism Committee of the Security Council.

In response to the mandates contained in the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, UNODC and its Terrorism Prevention Branch seeks to:

  • reinforce the on-going work to assist countries with the ratification and implementation of the universal counter-terrorism instruments,
  • especially through increased support to national criminal justice systems for related capacity-building and specialized training;
  • develop new initiatives to promote counter-terrorism legal cooperation, especially at the regional and sub-regional levels, as well as good practices, legal research and academic training;
  • integrate pertinent counter-terrorism aspects in other relevant substantive areas of UNODC work;
  • draw on and build upon UNODC's overall expertise in crime prevention and drug control;
  • utilize UNODC's field level capacities as an effective conduit to transmit and foster counter-terrorism expertise to countries.