UNODC Global Firearms Programme co-organizes virtual regional meeting for Caribbean countries on Integrated Firearms Centres with CARICOM IMPACS
On 25 and 26 January 2022, UNODC’s Global Firearms Programme, in cooperation with CARICOM IMPACS and with funding from Germany, organised a virtual regional meeting about the establishment of Integrated Firearms Centres in the Caribbean region, a strategic initiative proposed by UNODC to support the implementation of the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap.
The two-days regional meeting gathered more than 70 criminal justice practitioners from around the Caribbean region, who shared national experiences and exchanged thoughts about these centres. The idea behind the Integrated Firearms Centres is to centralise information at national level, analyse and distribute it, and act internationally as a focal point for the purpose of information exchange and international cooperation with different law enforcement agencies in the respective countries. Hence, such centres would be in charge of firearms control matters, including forensics, firearms registries, investigating and tracing of firearms relevant to the issue of illicit trafficking in firearms, their parts and components and ammunition and other related crimes. The meeting also offered the space to identify needs and opportunities and discuss the possible steps to establish those centres.
The activity was part of the project “Supporting the implementation of the crime prevention and criminal justice component of the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap”, aimed to prevent and counter illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms and their links to transnational organised crime and other serious crimes, and ultimately to address the scourges of armed violence in the region by:
- Enhanced capacity of criminal justice system to counter illicit proliferation and misuse of firearms in the context of the Caribbean Roadmap and reinforce legislative and regulatory frameworks to comply with international and regional instruments
- Enhanced capacity of criminal justice institutions and border management services to detect, investigate, prosecute, and adjudicate illicit firearms trafficking cases and related offences, and to engage in effective law enforcement and judicial cooperation for that purpose.
- Promote effective international cooperation and sharing of information and good practices among firearms and organised crime practitioners on the prevention and combat of firearms trafficking and related crimes, through regular contacts and use of specialised cooperation networks and platforms.
- Monitoring illicit trafficking flows through enhanced periodic data collection and analysis on firearms and related matters.
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