Objective: Enhance the Rule of Law and Human Security across the Region

Particularly through cross-sectoral responses based upon multi-stakeholder partnerships, and an enhanced capacity to meet their security, justice and health priorities under the Sustainable Development Goals. The Regional Programme (RP) guides UNODC's work in the region, to provide a framework for action that addresses current needs and is flexible enough to respond to emerging threats and changes in Member States priorities. The RP provides an umbrella to meaningfully combine ongoing and future global, regional and country-specific programming, to ensure overarching responses to transnational issues, and to increase synergies and cooperation between various areas of UNODC's mandates. Under this RP, UNODC proposes to continue to support interventions through its following five sub-programmes:

Sub-Programme 1: Countering Transnational Organized Crime and Trafficking 
Sub-Programme 1 aims at promoting and supporting effective responses to transnational organized crime, illicit trafficking, and illicit drug trafficking at the legal, technical and policy level. Several projects fall under this Sub-Programme, relating to piracy and other maritime crime, transnational organized crime, trafficking in persons, smuggling of migrants, money laundering, illicit trafficking, wildlife products trafficking, among others.

Sub-Programme 2: Countering Corruption

The main goal of Sub-Programme 2 ensures that Member States are equipped to prevent and combat corruption through effective implementation of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC).

Sub-Programme 3: Terrorism Prevention
Sub-Programme 3 aims atpromoting and strengthening a functional criminal justice regime against terrorism that is effective and is implemented by States in accordance with the rule of law. Within this Sub-Programme, UNODC ROEA supports Member States to establish national counter-terrorism legal frameworks in conformity with international human rights standards and norms and to enhance expertise on specific counter-terrorism thematic areas

Sub-Programme 4: Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
The Sub-Programme on Justice aims at strengthening the rule of law through the prevention of crime and the promotion of effective, fair, humane and accountable criminal justice systems in line with the United Nations standards and norms in crime prevention and criminal justice and other relevant information.

Sub-Programme 5: Prevention of Drug Use, Treatment and Care of Drug Use Disorders and HIV and AIDS Prevention and Care

The goal of Sub-Programme 5 is to promote and support the adoption and implementation of comprehensive, evidence-based, gender and youth responsive national and regional responses addressing drug use and HIV prevention, treatment, care and support.

Further, the RP is set out to ensure that Member States receive the required assistance to be able to achieve the goals they signed up to as defined in the new global agenda for development, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). All of UNODC's mandates reflect universal aspirations embedded within the SDGs, and UNODC has the technical expertise and experience in capacity building in the region to support Member States in reaching those goals, including:

Goal 3: 'Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all, at all ages'

Goal 5: 'Achieve gender quality and empower all women and girls'

Goal 15: 'Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss'

Goal 16: 'Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels'

Goal 17: 'Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development'

The SDGs also align with the Aspirations/Pillars developed by the African Union (AU) in its Agenda 2063. Agenda 2063 is an aspirational document, highlighting key areas to be addressed that neatly fit within UNODC's mandate. The AU has recognized the detrimental impact that drugs, crime and corruption have on development efforts. In Agenda 2063, the AU outlines its approach to learning lessons from the past, building on progress and strategically exploiting all opportunities available to ensure positive socio-economic transformation within the next 50 years. Agenda 2063 recognizes the threat and risks posed by its vision by TOC, the drug trade, illicit financial flows and corruption, setting the foundation for strategic response.

The connection between Aspiration/pillar 2 and Sustainable Development Goal 16 is a clear example of the two Agendas sharing a similar objective. For example:

  • Regarding Pillar 3: "An Africa of good governance, democracy, respect for human rights, justice and the rule of law", UNODC supports African countries in the areas of crime prevention and criminal justice reform, addressing gender-based violence, international cooperation in criminal matters, and anti-corruption.
  • Regarding Pillar 4:"A peaceful and secure Africa", UNODC assists African countries in the area of terrorism prevention, counter drug trafficking, combating organized crime, firearms control, preventing and countering trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants, and maritime crime.

In the context of the SDGs and the AU 2063 Agenda, the RP mainstreams crime and drug control in the development agenda, strengthens the policy dialogue with regional and national stakeholders in promoting the rule of law, improves the dialogue/cooperation with civil society, and supports "knowledge networks" across the region.