The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime defines organized crime groups broadly, encompassing most forms of profit-motivated crime. Aside from its work on specific markets (drugs, trafficked persons, smuggled migrants, firearms, and wildlife), UNODC has conducted a number of regional studies on the full spectrum of organized criminal activities. Starting with Crime and Development in Africa (2005), many of these studies have taken the form of Transnational Organized Crime Threat Assessments (TOCTAs). In addition to providing a description of the mechanics of illicit trade, the TOCTAs explore the reasons why a region is vulnerable to organized crime and the impact that this crime is having on social, economic, and political development. The political impact of organized crime can include corruption, loss of democratic participation, instability, and conflict. Regional studies have included those in West, Central, and East Africa; East Asia and the Pacific, Central America and the Caribbean, and South-eastern Europe. In 2021, UNODC is conducting its first national TOCTA, in Nigeria.
Crime, Violence and Development: Trends, Costs and Policy Options in the Caribbean (jointly with the World Bank), 2007
