In today’s complex world, security challenges are increasingly regional and global, with a direct impact on national security, and they threaten the sustainable development of society.
As the only police organization that works at the global level, INTERPOL plays a unique role in supporting international policing efforts.
To do this in a consistent manner across the world, it is important that all actors in the global security architecture share an understanding of the threats and work towards the same outcomes.
We developed seven Global Policing Goals (GPGs) to address a range of issues related to crime and security. Endorsed by our member countries in 2017, the Goals were officially launched in 2018.
Consistent with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the principle of neutrality (enshrined in Articles 2 and 3 of INTERPOL’s Constitution respectively), the Global Policing Goals are universal, ambitious and underpinned by collective action.
United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
In 2018, the United Nations identified INTERPOL – in its capacity as the largest and oldest international law enforcement police organization in the world – as uniquely positioned to be the implementing partner of a number of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
INTERPOL’s Global Policing Goals are therefore aligned with the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
This applies especially to Goal 16 (SDG 16) “Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions” which sets targets to reduce all forms of violence, to curtail arms trafficking and to fight organized crime.
Positive impact on the UN SDGs
INTERPOL’s General Secretariat published a report in 2020 to show the relations – both direct and indirect – between each of the seven INTERPOL GPGs and individual United Nations SDGs and their targets.
This analysis took into account the Organization’s three priority crime programmes (Counter-Terrorism, Organized and Emerging Crime, and Cybercrime), and its Strategic Framework. It demonstrates the positive impact of the GPGs through concrete examples of INTERPOL’s policing capabilities, operational activities and initiatives.
In some cases, all seven INTERPOL GPGs support the same UN SDG, due to the crosscutting nature of the SDG in question. This is particularly the case for SDG 5 (Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls), and SDG 17 (Revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development). In other cases, the links between the GPGs and SDGs are more specific.
INTERPOL’s seven Global Policing Goals
Goal 1: Counter the threat of terrorism
- Identify and arrest terrorist suspects
- Strengthen intelligence-sharing platforms
- Disrupt terrorist movement and mobility
- Trace and disrupt financial streams and weapons sourcing
Goal 2: Promote border integrity worldwide
- Identify criminal and victim movements and travel
- Share information with and between border officials
- Contribute to the establishment of global standards for border security
- Assist member countries with maintaining the integrity of their security documents (e.g. addressing the use of counterfeit/false passports)
Goal 3: Protect vulnerable communities
- Detect crimes and criminals and identify prevention opportunities
- Protect victims of crime from exploitation and re-victimization
- Respect human rights of vulnerable communities
- Develop robust networks of experts to exchange information, best practice and operational activity
- Disrupt the profit element in the criminal business model
- Identify and disrupt the illicit financial streams and profits derived through this criminal business model
Goal 4: Secure cyberspace for people and businesses
- Establish partnerships to secure cyberspace
- Expand cybercrime investigative expertise
- Safeguard communities through standard setting, public education
- Protect critical infrastructure
Goal 5: Promote global integrity
- Promote good governance and rule of law
- Enhance corruption investigative expertise
- Promote a culture of integrity where corruption is not acceptable
- Build mechanisms to support and defend integrity and restore stolen assets
Goal 6: Curb illicit markets
- Raise awareness among the public of the risks associated with illicit goods and products
- Build mechanisms to detect emerging illicit markets
- Strengthen capacity to investigate and prevent illicit trade, including its financing
- Identify and disrupt the illicit financial stream and profits derived through this type of criminal activity
- Identify and disrupt organized crime and drugs networks
Goal 7: Support environmental security and sustainability
- Strengthen capacity to investigate environmental crime
- Protect resource-dependent communities, vulnerable species and natural heritage
- Build mechanisms to protect biodiversity and natural resources
- Disrupt organized crime networks and the profit element
- Identify and disrupt the illicit financial stream and profits derived through this type of criminal activity
