Africa Civil Society Regional Network for the coordination of non-governmental stakeholders'
engagement in UNTOC review established
© UNODC CSU
Nairobi (Kenya), 28 June 2023 – The first African regional training on Stakeholder Engagement on the Implementation of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) review for East Africa was conducted in Nairobi from 21 to 23 June 2023 with 28 non-governmental stakeholders taking part. During the training participants gained practical knowledge about the process and instruments for engaging in the UNTOC review and enhanced their capacity to support their governments in implementation of UNTOC. The training is implemented under the Stakeholder Engagement for UNTOC (SE4U) project funded by the United States' Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).
The training which was organized by UNODC Civil Society Unit was opened by the UNODC Representative for East Africa, Mr. Neil Walsh, the Kenyan Focal Point for UNTOC review, Ms. Claries Kariuki-Mwirigi, and INL representative Ms. Roselyn Linguli. It provided an opportunity for participants to learn about the UNTOC self-assessment questionnaire, and how to provide responses to its questions. Participants were also introduced to the international framework for the prevention of organized crime, international multi-stakeholder collaboration opportunities called Constructive Dialogues and national engagement opportunities called Pilot Initiatives, both of which are implemented under the SE4U project.
Highlighting the role of civil society in the UNTOC review process, the Kenyan Slum Child Foundation founder George Ochieng Odalo shared his positive experience on constructive engagement with government. He advised civil society representatives to remain patient and focus on bigger goals: “Develop synergy with government to work together against organized crime”.
The last day of the regional training was dedicated to the creation of the Regional Civil Society Network, which will facilitate the coordination of non-governmental stakeholders from African to engage in UNTOC review. All participants of the training became founding members of the network, and a Steering Committee was formed to facilitate the operationalization of the network.