OSCE organizes workshops on youth crime and drug use prevention in Nur-Sultan

On 17 March, and 11 and 12 April, the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities and the OSCE Transnational Threats Department together with the OSCE Academy in Bishkek, co-organized workshops on youth crime and drug use prevention in Nur-Sultan. The focus of the workshops was cross-agency co-operation through the exchange of best practices and lessons learned in this specific area.

Representatives from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Education and Science, the Academy of Law Enforcement Agencies of the Republic of Kazakhstan Prosecutor's Office, the National Commission for Women and Family and Demographic Policy under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Committee on Youth and Family Affairs of the Ministry of Information and Social Development, the Anti-Corruption Agency, as well as school teachers, university professors and civil society experts attended the workshops. Participants emphasized the important role of education in preventing youth involvement in or exploitation by organized crime, corruption and drug use, and the need to strengthen educational programmes in schools and universities to address these threats.

UNODC Education4Justice and Global Programme on Prevention training materials introduced during these workshops provide guidance on effective ways of educating youth on the threats of organized crime, corruption and drug use.

In her opening remarks, Karbozova Meruert, Chief Consultant of the Prevention Service of the Anti-Corruption Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan, emphasized: “The future of every country is in the hands of young people. That is why its proper upbringing, cultivating fundamental values, strengthening anti-corruption immunity and legal culture will make it possible to raise conscious and law-abiding citizens who are ready to contribute to the development and prosperity of their country.”

The workshops were held in the framework of the OSCE-wide project “Enhancing youth crime and drug use prevention through education on legality and awareness campaigns addressing threats of organized crime and corruption”. The project, financed by Germany, aims to prevent transnational organized crime, corruption and drug use, by complementing criminal justice efforts and promoting respect for the rule of law through education.