A new perspective to prevent and control crime

Citizen safety is an essential determinant of the wellbeing of people. Twenty-four percent of the families in Latin America considers that insecurity is the main problem that affects their quality of life, above unemployment, inflation, or the provision of basic public services such as health or education, according to CAF's 2013 Survey. In addition, 60 percent of the population thinks that insecurity has increased in the past five years.

The tenth edition of CAF's 2014 Economy and Development Report (RED 2014), presented at the Universidad de Los Andes in Bogota, seeks to open spaces for reflection and debate for the design and implementation of better public policies in the area of safety. Por una America Latina más segura: una perspectiva para prevenir y controlar el delito (For a Safer Latin America: a Perspective to Prevent and Control Crime), proposes an approach where the occurrence of crime emerges from the interaction of two elements: individuals with an inclination to commit crimes, and situations that affect the opportunity to commit crimes. 

Enrique Garcia, CAF's Executive Director, stated that "It is necessary to have a comprehensive vision of crime prevention, with timely and quality interventions in each stage of the cycle of life of people. For example, the RED 2014 recommends the implementation of early stimulation programs and others aiming at strengthening socio-emotional skills along the cycle of life of people which, added to quality education, are essential pillars for sustained and equitable growth, with greater citizen security.  

Research suggests that all strategies focused on citizens must have a comprehensive view of both victims and criminals. In addition, it must be associated to democratic forms of coexistence, and political and institutional participation that promotes greater trust between citizens and authorities. 

In this respect, the report suggests the need to plan, design, and implement effective interventions in the fight against crime. For this, it is necessary to have reliable measurements and statistics regarding the incidence of crime, as well as public policy initiatives that are subject to monitoring and evaluations to learn about their impacts, and generate institutional capacities to improve decision making and its effective implementation.

The complete RED 2014 may be consulted at http://publicaciones.caf.com/media/40777/reporte-economia-desarrollo-seguridad-control-delito.pdf