At-risk youth and crime prevention: Strategies from civil society organisations

"Vulnerabilities of young people increase in contexts susceptible to the incubation of organized crime and criminal markets. In these scenarios they often face lack of education or job opportunities, the need to support their families’ financial stability, and share a sense of injustice and lack of protection, situations that attract many of them to join the lines of gangs or to their first interaction with criminal activity with petty theft, collection of extortion fees, micro trafficking, or even murder for hire. The lack of safe spaces and protective environments, and the presence of negative role models in their communities increase the affectation of young people by organized crime.

This panel seeks to present initiatives and responses to support at-risk youth, implemented by civil society organisations working in highly vulnerable contexts in Colombia, Brazil, Liberia, and Rwanda. Speakers will introduce the models put in place to both protect youth from falling prey of criminal organizations, and recover youth already involved in these scenarios. Thought as a knowledge sharing opportunity, the panel aims at giving successful examples of work with at-risk youth and identify lessons that can be applied in similar contexts. "