Mexico and Korea build bridges to improve crime statistics

From May 23 to 27, we received staff from the Statistical Office of the Republic of South Korea and the Center of Excellence for Crime and Criminal Justice Statistics in Asia and the Pacific (CoE-UNODC-KOSTAT). The visit sought to facilitate technical exchange with the National Institute of Statistics and Geography of Mexico (INEGI) and the Center of Excellence in Statistical Information on Government, Crime, Victimization and Justice (CoE-UNODC-INEGI) for the improvement of crime and criminal justice statistics.

On behalf of INEGI, they shared the conformation of the National Subsystem of Information on Government, Public Security and Justice Administration. The Vice President of the Board of Governors and President of INEGI, Adrián Franco, presented INEGI’s historical progress in terms of government surveys and censuses and pointed out the relevance of the Institute’s work in producing and compiling data on crime and criminal justice to inform the public policy decision-making process.

Representatives of the CoE-UNODC-KOSTAT and CoE-UNODC-INEGI exchanged experiences and identified future areas of collaboration. Salomé Flores, Coordinator of CoE-UNODC-INEGI, presented the work done by the Center over the last 10 years in 29 of the 33 countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. On the other hand, the Coordinator of the CoE-UNODC-KOSTAT, Hyun Jung Park, spoke about the progress made in Asia and the Pacific since its creation.

Within this exchange, she highlighted the review of the work plan to organize the 6th International Conference on Governance, Crime and Justice Statistics, to be held in November 2022. Also noteworthy was the exchange on the regional work for the creation, review and promotion of the Initiative for the Crime Victimization Survey in Latin America and the Caribbean (VICLAC), with which the future of this type of exercise in the Asia-Pacific region was discussed. In addition, multiple sessions were held to discuss the challenges in the implementation of the International Classification of Crime for Statistical Purposes (ICCS), and the strengthening of administrative records of security and justice.

For its part, INEGI shared the work generated from the General Directorate of Government, Public Security and Justice Statistics, which since 2009 has developed different statistical programs, both censuses and surveys, with the highest quality standards. INEGI also invited the Korean delegation to participate as observers in the ordinary session of the Specialized Technical Committee on Corruption Information and in the presentation of the National Survey on Government Quality and Impact.

The KOSTAT delegation shared the institute’s way of working, highlighting the role of guarantor of the quality of the administrative records of the rest of the institutions that make up the South Korean national statistical system.

At the end of their visit to Mexico, the CoE-UNODC-KOSTAT and the CoE-UNODC-INEGI agreed on joint actions in the short and medium term, to strengthen the link and the common vision of the UNODC Centers of Excellence.