UNODC Illicit Arms Flows Questionnaire: baseline assessment in the Western Balkans

7 December 2022, Belgrade, Serbia: UNODC Global Firearms Programme (GFP) organized a meeting with representatives from the Western Balkans to review and validate the baseline assessment on firearms data in the criminal justice system with a view to improve data collection and provision of information for the annual UNODC Illicit Arms Flow Questionnaire (IAFQ). 

UNODC GFP presented a summary of the submissions by Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia in the last 5 years and discussed ways to scale up this process. The participants reflected on the presented information about their capability to provide responses to the 30 questions of the IAFQ and provided additional feedback and suggestions for the improvement of the report. They also highlighted the need to develop detailed instructions for answering each question, the need for training on the structure and content of the IAFQ and on the analytical questions and interpretation of data on illicit trafficking in firearms, as well as the need for technical assistance for improving cooperation among different agencies/institutions across national data collection systems. 

The delegations validated the baseline assessment and requested UNODC to reflect their comments to be provided by the end of 2022, in the final version of the document.

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.

For more information:

15.UNODC Illicit Arms Flows Questionnaire: baseline assessment in the Western Balkans