The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is the UN agency responsible for coordinating international drug control activities. It was established in 2002 and currently has around 500 staff members worldwide. Its headquarters are in Vienna and it has 21 field offices as well as a liaison office in New York. The UNODC was established by the UN Secretary-General to “enable the Organization to focus and enhance its capacity to address the interrelated issues of drug control, crime prevention and international terrorism in all its forms.” In fulfilling its mandate “to assist Member States in their struggle” against these forces, the UNODC has a three pillar work programme. This consists of research and analytical work, normative work and field-based technical cooperation projects. To this end, the UNODC Drug Programme, formerly the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP), runs alternative development projects, illicit crop monitoring and anti-money laundering projects. As the lead agency for international drug control activities, the UNODC plays an important role in assisting Member States, particularly so-called “producer countries” and developing states, to address a wide range of drug related problems. It also occupies a unique position for the compilation of global data sets, to track and investigate international trends in drug production, manufacture, trafficking and use and to act as a central hub for the dissemination of best practice in the formulation and implementation of drug policy. Read more.

IDPC workplan for the period 2010-2011

IDPC will continue to engage constructively with colleagues in the UNODC on policy and programme issues, but we will also be critical where we feel that the Office is not fulfilling the potential of its role. In the summer of 2010, we will produce a full report in response to the publication of the 2010 World Drug Report, that assesses the progress made by the Office in assembling and analysing meaningful data on the drug problem and government responses, and on ensuring that its policy announcements are consistent with available evidence.

We will also engage in advocacy to ensure that the appointment of the next Executive Director of the UNODC facilitates the necessary modernisation of the functioning and policies of the Office. When the appointment is announced, we will publish a briefing paper summarising the challenges facing the new Executive Director in the coming years.