United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

14 December 2023, The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) launched 'Project Justitia', a criminal justice initiative aimed at countering organized crime and illicit firearms trafficking in the Western Balkans to enhance the region's criminal justice system effectiveness.

Project Justitia builds on the UNODC's previous work from 2020 to 2023, primarily focusing on legislative improvements and strengthening judicial, prosecutorial and law enforcement capacities. Progress has been notable in several jurisdictions: North Macedonia and Montenegro have revised their criminal laws to comply with the UN Firearms Protocol. Meanwhile, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and Serbia are advancing with the development of draft provisions for legislative reform. UNODC’s work has also resulted in improving the skills of criminal justice practitioners in investigating and prosecuting firearms trafficking. This involved training in areas like firearms identification, collection of electronic evidence and firearms tracing, with 281 professionals trained and a platform for exchanging best practices among 214 experts. UNODC's work also focused on criminal procedural aspects, including the use of special investigative measures in firearms and organized crime cases. Additionally, UNODC underscored the importance of consistent court practices in firearms trafficking cases by developing six Firearms Case Law collections.

For the 2024-2025 period, Project Justitia has outlined clear objectives. These include enhancing the abilities of criminal justice institutions to draft effective laws, conduct thorough investigations, and prosecute cases involving organized crime and illicit firearms. Planned activities encompass organizing meetings for legislative harmonization, developing training courses, and supporting the application of special investigative measures. The work with judiciary is a significant component of the project and provides for continuous work on the firearms case law, harmonization of judicial practices taking into consideration the human rights standards.

With Project Justitia, UNODC is taking a significant step towards addressing the challenges of arms trafficking and organized crime in the Western Balkans, aiming for a more stable and secure region.      

This activity is implemented with financial support provided by Germany, the United Kingdom, Sweden, France, the Netherlands, and Norway through the Western Balkans SALW Control Roadmap Trust Fund and supported by the European Union