Consulting citizens helps to achieve safer spaces

During a conversation organized by CAF, Development Bank of Latin America, Regina De Luca Miki, former Secretary for Federal Security of Brazil, stated, "Without homogenous information, shared al all government levels, security policies in federal countries cannot be effective". The conversation included the participation of individuals responsible for security policies at different government levels (national, provincial, and municipal), representatives from different geographies and political signs, and renowned specialists on this subject.  

During her visit to CAF's office in Argentina, the Brazilian expert stated that citizen participation is key to achieve safe communities that live in peace. 

De Luca explained this with full knowledge: as Secretary of Social Defense she promoted a comprehensive and participative prevention management which reduced more than ten times the homicide rate in Diadema, in Sao Paulo, one of the most violent urban nucleus in the country at the time. In addition, she contributed to significantly reduce gender violence, criminality, and traffic accidents in town. 

The expert spoke about citizen participation, transparence, prevention of drug trafficking, human trafficking, and terrorism in sensitive border areas, and also valued CAF's work on these subjects, and the institution's determination to create spaces to reflect, as well as the construction of a new strategic approach to support the countries of Latin America with respect to citizen security.

Participants in the session identified a series of common challenges and expressed the usefulness of learning of Brazil's strategy to face a list of problems that are part of their own government agenda. In this respect, they agreed to explore ways to cooperate with CAF to improve information and analysis of criminality, comprehensive prevention of crimes and, essentially, training of government and civil society leaders. 

CAF will work for the materialization of those initiatives, which will be implemented fist in the provinces of  Buenos Aires, Cordoba, and Tucuman, in a joint effort with the respective areas of the national government.