A new initiative backed by the Inter-American Development Bank is addressing an issue rarely prioritized by multilateral development banks: security and organized crime.
The Alliance for Security, Justice and Development launched a few weeks ago, bringing together 18 member countries from Latin America and the Caribbean that are concerned about the high costs of security and aim to tackle organized crime as part of their development efforts. IDB estimates that crime costs the region an average of 3.4% of its gross domestic product — an economic burden that is far from insignificant.
Organized crime accounts for half of homicides across the Latin America and Caribbean region, and “has no national frontiers, goes beyond national borders,” said IDB President Ilan Goldfajn in a press conference. He emphasized that a regional initiative is essential to effectively address this pervasive issue.
About the author
Adva Saldinger@AdvaSal
Adva Saldinger is a Senior Reporter at Devex where she covers development finance, as well as U.S. foreign aid policy. Adva explores the role the private sector and private capital play in development and authors the weekly Devex Invested newsletter bringing the latest news on the role of business and finance in addressing global challenges. A journalist with more than 10 years of experience, she has worked at several newspapers in the U.S. and lived in both Ghana and South Africa.
