Press Briefing to launch UNODC Study: "Why Fighting Crime Can Assist Development in Africa"

UNIS Vienna today organized a press briefing to launch a United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) study  titled "Why Fighting Crime can Assist Development in Africa".  The study was also launched today in Abuja, Nigeria, by Antonio Maria Costa, Executive Director, UNODC, along with Chief Akinlolu Olujinmi, Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Nigeria. In Vienna, Chris van der Burgh, Chief, Regional Section for Africa and the Middle East, UNODC, and Theodore Leggett, Research Expert, UNODC, presented the study. Nasra Hassan, Director UNIS and Spokesperson UNODC chaired the briefing.

Ms. Hassan opened the briefing by highlighting some of the main features of the study. She also informed the media of the forthcoming Africa Round Table to be held in Addis Ababa on 30-31 May.

Mr. Van der Burgh said that if the concept of sustainable development was to be promoted in Africa, the issues of drugs and crime needed to be dealt with. He added that crime had been identified as one of the major impediments to development in Africa.

In his power point presentation, Mr. Leggett said there was not enough statistical  information available on Africa --  for instance, he said police crime statistics were available for only about half of all African countries. He also commented on the fact that African countries had the lowest number of officers in law enforcement and the judiciary per capita. This, among other factors, led to some of  the lowest conviction rates in the world (for instance, only 11 per cent of those accused of murder are convicted). He also pointed to the increase in transnational drug shipments, and the drug market created in Africa. "Crime negatively impacts business and investment, erodes social and human capital, and undermines state efforts to promote development," he added.

He said that while the report painted a grim picture of the African situation, it underscored the significant progress that has been made by African Governments in developing the legislative and organisational framework for dealing with the challenge of crime.

In response to a question on what the forthcoming Round Table in Africa aimed at achieving, Mr. Van der Burgh said that it was an effort to bring together African Ministers responsible for national drug and crime control policies, their counterparts in the main regional and subregional organizations, bilateral, multilateral and private donors, as well as civil society organizations. The main objective of this event is to formulate an Africa-wide programme of action for the period 2005-2010, that will serve to strengthen the rule of law and reduce the negative impact of drugs and crime on development.

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