UNODC Engagement with Civil Society on Drugs and Crime

UNODC recognizes the need to promote strong partnerships with civil society organizations in dealing with the complex issues of drug abuse and crime which undermine the fabric of society. The active involvement of civil society, which includes NGOs, community groups, labour unions, indigenous groups, charitable organizations, faith-based organizations, professional associations and foundations is essential to help UNODC carry out its global mandates.

Through GLOU68, UNODC Civil Society Team (CST) is the main entry point for non-governmental stakeholders and serves as a bridge between these stakeholders and UNODC substantive offices, field offices and Member States. Located within the Office of the Director for the Division for Policy Analysis and Public Affairs of UNODC, the CST carries out the following main functions:

Supporting the participation of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in intergovernmental meetings, in line with relevant UNODC mandates and rules of procedure for the respective intergovernmental bodies
Building capacity of non-governmental stakeholders to help them improve their knowledge of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and the Protocols Thereto, and related International Drug Policy Instruments. It does so together with relevant substantive offices
Maintaining a database of non-governmental stakeholders

The CST carries out these functions in close collaboration with relevant UNODC substantive offices, including Crime and Economic Branch, Organized Crime Branch, Drug Prevention and Health Branch, the Secretariat to the Governing Bodies, and relevant Field Offices. The CST also partners with umbrella organizations such as the UNCAC Coalition, Vienna NGO Committee on Drugs, and the Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice.

A guide for NGO participation in the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) and the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) is available here.

Highlights

Multi-stakeholder partnerships are vital for holistic approaches to counter organized crime

Through awareness raising, research, and advocacy civil society, academia and the private sector can reach a wider audience and achieve fruitful results. To highlight this, UNODC organized a side event "UNODC integrated approach to countering organized crime through the engagement of NGO's, academics and the private sector". Read more

Working together to implement UNGASS future commitments

During the UN General Assembly Special Sessions (UNGASS) the UNODC Civil Society Unit together with the UNCAC Coalition organised the side event ‘Civil Society engagement in UNCAC and future steps’ that gathered experts from around the globe. Best practices and challenges of civil society engagement in UNCAC were demonstrated during this side event. Read more here.

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News

Launch of UNODC Toolkit on Stakeholder Engagement for the Implementation of UNTOC

This toolkit aims to empower NGOs, academics and the private sector in their work with the view to contribute to effective implementation of the UNTOC, and promote systematic and comprehensive engagement with non-governmental stakeholders in line with the COP-UNTOC Resolution 9/1.

It is the main source for UNODC's Stakeholder for UNTOC Engagement (SE4U) trainings.

Download the Toolkit here.

UNODC

UNODC is pleased to invite interested NGOs, academic experts and private sector entities to join the WhatsOn – UNODC’s knowledge hub, an online database and knowledge-sharing platform. The WhatsOn aims to connect and engage with relevant non-government stakeholders and Member States working to prevent and combat transnational organized crime and corruption conducive to organized crime.

To become a member of the WhatsOn and to get access to all its resources, networks and knowledge opportunities, please fill in this form.