SAFER CITIES PROJECTS ARE ONGOING IN THE FOLLOWING CITIES:   GREATER JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA Click here for more information DURBAN, SOUTH AFRICA Click here for more information DAR ES SALAAM, TANZANIA Click here for more information ADJAME, YOPOUGON, TREICHVILLE (ABIDJAN), COTE D'IVOIRE Click here for more information ANTANANARIVO, MADAGASCAR Click here for more information DAKAR, SENEGAL Click here for more information NAIROBI, KENYA Click here for more information YAOUNDE, CAMEROON Click here for more information SAFER PORT MORESBY INITIATIVE Click here for more information   PROJECT IDENTIFICATION IS ONGOING IN OTHER CITIES IN AFRICA, ASIA, EASTERN EUROPE AND LATIN AMERICA SAFER CITIES GREATER JOHANNESBURG Launched: 1997 Funded by: Government of the Netherlands Executed by the City of Johannesburg. Between 1997 and 2000, the project was developed through a collaboration with UNHABITAT and the International Centre for the Prevention of Crime (ICPC), with core Dutch support and National Secretariat for Safety and Security approval. Johannesburg has long had a reputation for violent crime with some of the highest murder and rape rates in the world. A new safety strategy was developed aiming to co-ordinate between relevant safety and security agencies (Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department, SA Police Services, etc) to develop an overall Johannesburg strategy. The aim is to prevent and manage crime in the city based on a thorough analysis of current crime patterns over the long term. Since 2003, this collaboration has progressed towards UN-HABITAT providing technical support as a member of the reference group established to guide the development and implementation of the new City safety strategy. A range of partners, including private sector Business Against Crime, are involved in the project. Development Local diagnosis of security conducted through a victimisation survey influenced a major shift in perception and understanding of crime by South African authorities as findings demonstrated that crime victims were mainly black and poor. The survey also drew attention to issues related to victim reporting and support services. Victimisation surveys have since been carried out in several South African cities, amongst others Durban, Pretoria, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town. Local crime prevention strategy developed in 1997 was approved by Municipal Council. The strategy prioritised establishing metropolitan metropolitan and municipal police services, including crime prevention in the agenda of numerous city departments, and coordinating prevention actions among various partners who play a role in reducing or preventing crime. Four levels of intervention were identified: making the environment less conducive to crime developing a culture of prevention supporting preventive policing and law enforcement preventing victimization, and supporting victims. Within the Johannesburg 20-30 project, a new city safety strategy was approved by the Council in 2004. The new city safety strategy is aimed to reduce both the actual incidences of crime as well as the negative perceptions of crime which impact on business investment decisions. The city is targeting priority areas which are important for the economic development of Johannesburg. Activities Creating employment by hiring car guards, better enforcing by-laws, and establishing a Hawker Unit in the Inner City. Tools for victims support have been developed with Business Against Crime. Since 2004 a multi-disciplinary team is focusing on five key operational programmes in implementing the new Johannesburg safety strategy: surveillance winning back the streets - rape, murder, car hijackings, muggings, break-ins, armed robbery, white collar crime and corruption recovering guns used in crime and creating Gun-Free Zones tackling organized crime keeping young people away from crime preventing offending and victimisation. Contact: Nazira Cachalia Programme Manager: Joburg 2030 City Safety Programme, Office of the MMC, Public Safety JMPD Head Quarters, 195 Main rd, Martindale, JHB, 2001 Cell: 082 464 4259 Tel: 011-758 9261 Fax: 011-758 9165 E-mail: nazirac@joburg.org.za Up SAFER CITIES DURBAN Launched: 1999 Funded by: Embassy of the Netherlands Implemented by eThekwini Municipality The Durban Safer City project was established at the request of the South African National Secretariat for Safety and Security. UNHABITAT and the International Centre for the Prevention of Crime (ICPC) were asked to help devise a new crime prevention policy, which was adopted by the Council in 2000. A Safer Cities coordinating unit was established and a local security diagnosis conducted. In 2003, the new eThekwini Municipality Safety and Crime Prevention Strategy was developed and adopted by council as part of a five-year strategic plan of action. Development The Durban Safer Cities Strategy brings different role-players together in a prevention partnership. Three pillars of the strategy: Effective Policing and Crime Prevention Targeted "Social" Crime Prevention Crime Prevention through Environmental Design. Safer Cities Steering Committee of city councillors, public officials, South African Police Services and Business Against Crime members was established to guide project development. Research Advisory Group established to advise on research, information gathering, analysis and best practices, mainly in the area of "social" crime prevention: violence against women, victim support, youth development, understanding the causes of violence Activities A Directory of responsible officials and services including station officials, Welfare and Social services and NGOs providing similar services was compiled. The Inanda, Ntuzuma and KwaMashu (INK) areas were declared special Presidential Pilot projects for Urban Renewal. Selection criteria were that the areas had the highest rates of poverty, unemployment and violent crime in the Province. eThekwini municipality has adopted an Area Based Management approach to focus and improve council delivery. Throughout the city administrative areas have been established to ensure integrated and efficient delivery of services on the local level, such as safety. The Safer Cities project has worked closely with Community Policing Forums to hold training workshops - at which people were taught local crime prevention strategies. The Warwick Junction Urban Renewal Project has developed some innovative practices and partnerships. Their expertise has been recognized and their geographic area of operation expanded to include the entire inner city area (iTRUMP). Urban Improvement Precincts are innovative means of public/private cooperation. UIPs are self-taxing groups of businesses that partner together to provide the services needed for cleaner, safer and more attractive business districts. The project was reviewed in 2003, streamlined with the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and adopted by council. Contact: Safer Cities Durban Lunghisa Manzi P O Box 96, Durban, 4000 Suite 8, 19th Floor, 75 Winder Street, Durban, 4000 Tel: 031-337 5500 Fax: 031-337 0172 E-mail: SaferCities@durban.gov.za Up SAFER CITIES: DAR ES SALAAM Launched: 1997 Funded by: Government of the Netherlands and Embassy of Sweden in Dar es Salaam Established by UN-HABITAT with technical support from the International Centre for Prevention of Crime (ICPC) under the umbrella of UNDP Dar es Salaam with core Dutch and Swedish support. Project is located within the Dar es Salaam City Council and in each of the three municipalities of Ilala, Kinondoni, and Temeke. Development Crime Prevention Strategy developed through focus group discussions and stakeholder workshops. Strategy focuses on: promoting a culture of adherence to law, reducing unemployed youth at risk, sensitising residents on the need to fight crime through strategies developed by themselves, community-oriented policing, and re-establishing ward tribunals to expedite law and by-law enforcement and trial of minor offences. Sensitisation and awareness campaign conducted to mobilise key partners at local level and encourage civil society participation. Activities Pilot projects include: Neighborhood watch initiative (Sungu Sungu) Employment creation and skills training for youth Safety audit for women Establishment of Ward Tribunals A victimisation survey in March 2000 and March 2004 Auxiliary police (city police) established and trained with support from ICPC. A recent evaluation (June 2003) indicates measures to be taken to strengthen this initiative. Institutionalization in the city’s new municipal authorities is completed (specific Safer Cities units have been established or this purpose). Activities focus on supporting community initiatives and violence against women,institutional capacity building and development of ward tribunals. Project replication to other towns in Tanzania is ongoing. Victimization studies have already been undertaken in a few towns nd a workshop with city authorities from various towns has been held in March 2004. A review and evaluation of the Safer Cities Dar programme was undertaken in September 2004. Contact: Safer Cities Dar es Salaam Anna Mtani & Samwel Lyimo P.O. Box 9084, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Tel: +255 (022) 2130959 Fax: +255 (022) 2130961 E-mail: c_sc@dcc.go.tz Up SAFER CITIES PROGRAMME IN ABIDJAN Launched: 1st phase 1998, and 2nd phase 2003 Appui à la sécurité urbaine à Abidjan Funded by: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of Belgium Project started in three municipalities of Abidjan: Adjamé, Treichville and Yopougon and it now covers the whole Metropolitan area of Abidjan (13 municipalities) Immediate objectives: Local diagnosis of insecurity Victimisation survey Setting-up a city-wide coalition on crime prevention Development of a city action plan Implementation of the city action plans and municipal action plans focusing on conflict resolution, mediation, actions towards groups at risk and environmental design. Institutionalization of the project. Development Appraisal of the police undertaken by two international police experts (from Belgium and Canada) in April-May 1999, approved by Government (Conseil National de Sécurité). Diagnosis of insecurity completed in the three Municipalities. Start-up of pilot activities focusing on youth and situational prevention. Extension of the project to the metropolitan level requested by the Government and Mayors of Abidjan's municipalities in 1999. Training of Safer Cities coordinators conducted by the European Forum on Urban Safety (EFUS). Activities Safer Cities Conference capitalizing the results as well as Challenges and obstacles of the project todate was organized by the Ivorian Forum for Safety and Security in 2001. A number of cities in Côte d'Ivoire have since expressed their interest in developing local crime prevention strategies. In 2003, after a long interruption due to civil strife in the country, a new phase started with the expansion of the project to the 13 Municipalities of Abidjan with support from UNDP and the Belgian Government. New activities have started with local diagnosis in each of the municipalities under the coordination of a National coordinator, 3 municipal coordinators and 13 assistants. Contacts: Agnes Adiko, National coordinator Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire Tel: 225-20312670/75/76 E-mail: agnes.adiko@undp.org Up SAFER CITIES ANTANANARIVO Implemented and executed by: UN-HABITAT Funded by: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Started: 1999 At the request of the Malagasy government, UN-HABITAT undertook a mission to Antananarivo in 1997 to analyse the problems of delinquency and urban insecurity. In 1998, during a national seminar on urban poverty co-organised by Habitat and the Malagasy Government, the theme of insecurity and the prevention of crime emerged strongly as a main challenge to address. Further to this seminar, UNDP gave its support to Habitat to undertake a diagnosis on urban insecurity and crime in the capital city, Antananarivo. The main objectives of this project are the following: to undertake a urban insecurity profile in Antananarivo to further develop the capacities of the municipality in crime prevention, to develop a participatory crime prevention strategy to adequately deal with crime and its causes. Activities consisted in mobilising all the concerned stakeholders, under the co-ordinating role of the Municipality. A team of experts was also recruited to work on a diagnosis and main elements of a crime prevention strategy. The insecurity diagnosis had been completed analysing the main symptoms and causes of crime in the city as well as the responses at all levels (national, municipal, local, non-governmental). A seminar was organised thereafter to present the results of the diagnosis and formulate the main elements of a participatory crime prevention strategy and action plan. As follow up to this initial phase, a new project on crime prevention has been designed by the UNV organisation in close collaboration with the Safer Cities Programme. Safer Cities will provide technical assistance and training to the UN Volunteers who are going to run the project. Documents from the project: diagnostic de l'insécurité à Antananarivo Contact: Ms. Soraya SMAOUN Urban Safety Expert UN-HABITAT P.O. Box 30030 Nairobi, Kenya Phone 254-2-623500 Fax 254-2-624264/3536 Soraya.Smaoun@unhabitat.org Up SAFER CITIES DAKAR: Launched: 1999 Funded by: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Development A survey of crime and delinquency was undertaken in 1997 in Antananarivo. The themes of insecurity and crime prevention emerged strongly in the debates and experiences presented at the national seminar on urban poverty in 1998. A participatory review was completed in February 2000 under the supervision of UN-HABITAT and SCTIP experts (Service de Coopération Internationale de Police, France). A strategy and action plan were developed following this review. Activities Continuation of activities was made possible with new funding from the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) Programme. A team of 27 UNVs have been working since 2001 in developing community mobilisation and crime prevention strategies and reinforcing the capacities of the Municipality of Antananarivo to address crime and violence. A new Municipal Department on Social affairs and Safety was created in 2004, as a direct outcome of the project. Capitalization of the project's activities and development of a toolkit are currently under development. Contact: Projet “Volontariat contre la Violence” Dagny Mjos and Marie-Pierre Delcleve PNUD. Programme VNU BP 1348 Antananarivo 101 Madagascar Tel: 00 261 (0) 33 11 594 16 E-mail: dagny.mjos@undp.org / delclevemp@yahoo.fr Up SAFER CITIES NAIROBI Launched: 2001 Funded by: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Development A local coalition on crime prevention in Nairobi: Following an analysis of local actors, partners were identified and involved, under the leadership of the City Council of Nairobi (CCN). Working mechanisms and a workplan has progressively developed into a formal consultative body. Partners have been trained in the various selected tools for policies addressing urban violence. A local diagnosis of insecurity: through specific surveys and validation of the findings through workshops in the city a diagnosis of insecurity was realised. A local safety strategy approved by partners and local authority: Based on the results of the crime survey, the City Council of Nairobi with the main partners have prepared a strategy which was approved by full Council in April 2004. The final agreement on the strategy and its plan of action was reached at a City Residents Convention on Urban Safety in November 2005, in which an Urban Pact on Safety and a two-year Action Plan was endorsed and subsequently approved by a full council resolution in March 2005. Plan of action implemented: On the basis of the Action Plan, activities by partners and by the City Council of Nairobi will be implemented, in the Central Business District, and in slums. Pilot activities will also take place in selected hot spot areas (high crime) as well as on violence against women and youth at risk (such as one stop youth resource centre). The key crime prevention through environment design deliverables are expected to be realised by September 2006 and showcased as 'quick-wins' at the Africities 2006 Summit to be held in Nairobi. Institutionalisation and partnership: The city council leading to the institutionalisation of the Safer Cities project within the city council by the end of the two-year action plan and its subsequent replication to other cities and towns in Kenya. Activities A UNDP funded citywide crime victimization survey resulting in three publications. The establishment of a Safer Cities Nairobi Action Group (spearheaded by the Mayor and Provincial Commissioner) to support the development of a citywide crime prevention strategy. Training seminars for City Council of Nairobi (CCN) chief/technical officers and councillors on crime prevention, and study tours to similar projects in Dar es Salaam, and Montreal. A Safety Audit Night Walk and Public Rally to raise project profile and engage city residents in CCN's security-focused initiatives/activities. The establishment of an Interdepartmental Committee chaired by the Deputy Town Clerk and a CCN draft crime prevention strategy approved by full Council in April 2004. Constituency consultations have taken place under the joint coordination of CCN, Provincial Administration, and UN-HABITAT. Stakeholders consultations (facilitated by various organizations) have taken place involving CCN and: Residents Associations (KARA), Business (KAM), Community Policing Groups (NCBDA), Slum Dwellers (Shelter Forum), Police Stations (Kenya Police), Women Groups (CREAW), Youth (Youth for Habitat). A One Week-long City Residents Convention on Urban Safety in November 2004 and institutionalised in the city's calendar as an Annual Residents Crime Prevention and Urban Safety Week A youth employment focused pilot project in Nairobi has been launched. Contact: The Safer Nairobi Coordinator Town Clerk’s Department, City Council of Nairobi, P.O. Box 30075, Nairobi, Kenya Tel: +254 20 221349 Fax: +254 20 217704 Up SAFER CITIES YAOUNDÉ Launched: 2001 Funded by: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of Cameroon Safer Cities Cameroon is a component of the Urban Governance Programme that UN-HABITAT executes in the country with support from UNDP and other partners. The Safer Cities component started off in Yaoundé and was extended to Douala in 2003. There are plans to extend support to the cities of Bamenda and Maroua during 2005. Development Appointment of a team to develop the local safety appraisal in Yaoundé (2000) and Douala (2003). Restitution workshop held to discuss safety appraisal findings and propose priorities for action in both cities (in 2001 in Yaoundé and in 2003 in Douala). Diagnosis of insecurity report prepared and validated in both cities. Crime prevention strategies developed for both cities and at municipal level (Yaoundé city has six municipalities, Douala has five municipalities) through city-wide consultations and collaboration. The strategies focus on: improvement of police-citizen relations and access to justice and institutional reform. youth at risk and in conflict with the law, gender violence physical improvement and situational prevention measures Activities in Yaoundé Local prevention committees have been formed in each of the six municipalities to work in direct collaboration with the Mayor. A city level Urban prevention committee, chaired by the "delegué du gouvernement" coordinates proposals put forward at the municipal level and links with central government departments. Working groups are being formed to deal with specific areas of intervention. Municipal level pilot activities have been developed and resources are being raised to support their implementation. Activities cover the different areas of prevention and aim to develop local models of intervention to be replicated city-wide. A project to strengthen service provision to women victim of violence was launched recently. Its medium term aim is to develop a network of service providers in support of victims of violence, ranging from legal services, to health assistance to financial support. The project is also supporting the formulation of the Municipal Police for the City of Yaoundé, which will lead to the development of the legal frameworks and the implementation of the Municipal Police in the city. The 'safety audit' conducted with the sellers of a major market in the city is providing insights for the redesign of the market and further improving user involvement in project design in the city. Activities in Douala The Diagnosis conducted in 2003 has included a city-wide victim survey and the environmental assessment of 10 areas of the city. Pilot project supporting former street-children through self-employment is being implemented in collaboration with a local NGO. Other pilot projects being formulated include: early care for the children of market sellers; reduction of vandalism on public lights etc. Contacts: Zephirin Emini, Coordinator Safer Yaounde UNDP, BP 836, Yaounde, Cameroon Tel: +237-9909898 E-mail: yaoundeplussure@yahoo.fr, emizephirin@yahoo.fr Mamert Loe, Coordinator Safer Douala, Douala Urban Council BP 43, Douala, Cameroon Tel: +237-9976078 Fax: + 237-3426950 E-mail: loe_mamert2001@yahoo.fr Up SAFER PORT MORESBY INITIATIVE Launched: 2002 Funded by: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Papua New Guinea's capital, Port Moresby, has one of the highest urban crime rates in the world. The Government of PNG, supported by UNDP and UN-HABITAT, launched the Safer Port Moresby Initiative to build city-wide partnerships to tackle insecurity problems through a preventive approach. Development Establishment of a technical support team of local and international experts based in the offices of the Department of Social Welfare and Development. In collaboration with local partners, the team has developed a detailed work plan for the first phase of the project. Conducted assessment of the extent and types of crime and insecurity and identifying characteristics of perpetrators and victims through a city-wide Youth and Crime Survey, a Social Crime Mapping Exercise in one settlement of Port Moresby, and an analysis of institutional and criminal justice data and practices. Results of these surveys are synthesized in a Diagnosis of Local Insecurity report that will inform city-wide consultations for developing the city crime prevention strategy. A broad-based Local Coalition of partners and a smaller representative Coordinating Committee were formed to guide the local technical support team. Training the local team and selected individuals from the Local Coalition and Coordinating Committee for capacity building and project sustainability. A Safer City Strategy and Action Plan based on the results of the diagnosis has been drafted. Various donor agencies and government bodies have expressed interest and commitment to support Phase 2 of the initiative during which the action plans will be implemented. Activities Flower Pot making by youth who have been in conflict with the law Making Gordon's market safe - a pilot project in up-grading the market using the principles of crime prevention through environmental design Surveys were conducted on Youth and Crime and an informal settlement crime profile was developed Contact: Safer Port Moresby Initiative c/o Joseph Kaplat Secretary Department of Community Development P.O.Box 7354, WAIGANI, NCD Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea Tel: +675-3255727 Fax:+675-3250133 E-mail: jklapat@yahoo.com Up SAFER CITIES LATIN AMERICA Latin America & the Caribbean region The issue of urban crime and insecurity is crucial in the Latin American region. Since 2003, the Safer Cities Programme has been making contacts and giving assistance to selected municipalities in the region, notably to Santo Andre (Metropolitan area of Sao Paolo) and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. At the same time the Programme has been supporting activities of the “Comuna Segura” Programme in Chile by being part of a team evaluating the implementation of the programme nationally and also providing guidance to the development of a Chilean Safer Cities manual. In addition, since the second half of 2003, the UNHABITAT Regional office in Latin America and the Caribbean (ROLAC), jointly with Safer Cities, has been involved in the issue of Urban Security at the request of municipalities and Municipal Associations in, for example, Brazil, El Salvador and Colombia. ROLAC also participated in the last Regional Coalition Meeting which took place in Washington DC in 2003. In December 2003, Safer Cities and the Urban Management Programme based in Latin America, in collaboration with the Municipality of Guarulhos organized an international seminar on ‘Innovative Municipal practices for Safer Cities’. The objective of the seminar was to enhance dialogue between local authorities working on safety in the region, exchange good practices and pave the way for the development of a regional strategy and action plan through exchange, city-to-city mechanisms and concrete cooperation projects. Thereafter, a strategy for the region has been developed by UN-HABITAT (Safer Cities and ROLAC). One of the main developments in the region is the creation of a pilot Reference Centre for Urban Security in Brazil, a regional facility promoted by UN-HABITAT and the World Bank in partnership with municipal associations and local governments. The National Front of Mayors (FNP) has included public security issues in their national working agenda as a priority, and forming a Municipal Security working group. The World Bank has begun activities in the region, supporting capacity building initiatives and delivering methodological manuals to municipalities. The Reference Centre accelerates and optimises the development of the security agenda, and consolidates the existing framework of knowledge and experiences. It acts as a ‘clearing house’ of information, circulating information and expertise, and systematically integrating the different actors necessary to strengthen the agenda at the national level. The Reference Centre is designed to serve as a catalyst that integrates and mobilises the activities of different public and civil society institutions (municipalities, NGOs, academic institutions, international organisations). It organizes, articulates and co-ordinates the organization of experiences, the dissemination of information, offering technical support to municipalities, and facilitating the collaboration between cities and professionals dedicated to urban safety programmes. In October 2004, the Safer Cities Programme organized a Regional Conference on Urban Youth at Risk in Latin America and the Caribbean in Monterrey, Mexico. This conference resulted in the formulation of a regional strategy and a regional networking project that will seek to advance the capacity of cities in addressing the situation of urban youth violence and crime in the context of improved local governance approaches. Colombia At the request of the municipality of Bogotá, the Safer Cities Programme supported the Office of Women and Gender to take the lead in the organization of the second international Conference on Women’s Safety. The aim of the conference was to expand the understanding and communicate the interrelationship between violence in the public space and in domestic settings. The “Second International Conference on Safer Cities for Women and Girls” drew upon the expertisefrom local, regional, and international networks, and built upon the First International Conference, held in Montreal, Canada in 2002. The partner organizations were represented by civil society, academia, gender experts, urban planners, NGOs, police force, governmental representatives from the national and municipal levels, and organizers of international women’s networks, which are actively supported by UN-HABITAT, UNDP, and UNIFEM. Up SAFER CITIES BAMAKO Launched: 2003 Funded by: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Development The Safer Cities provides technical support to the District of Bamako in the development of a crime prevention strategy and plan of action for the city of Bamako. It also aims at strengthening municipal capacities on safety and crime prevention, through capacity building activities. This project is complementing a project funded by the Ministry of Justice, Canada on Crime prevention and Juvenile Delinquency in Mali. Activities Capacity-building sessions to the municipal staff on crime prevention approach andpractices Technical support to the Municipality in thefinalization of the diagnosis of insecurity anddevelopment of a crime prevention strategy, Development of pilot activities on social prevention. The municipal diagnosis was successfully completed in 2003 and main results were validated by key stakeholders' and the Minister of Justice. The crime prevention strategy is being developed and a number of pilot activities have been identified. Funding to implement these activities needs to be secured. Capacity-building sessions were provided to the municipal co-ordination team and Mayor of Bamako through training sessions provided by international and regional experts. Contact: Mamadou Doumbia Coordinateur du Projet Se’curite’ Urbaine Pre’vention de la De’linquance Juve’nile dans le District de Bamako Tel: (223) 6468427 E-mail: barthsangala@yahoo.fr Up SAFER CITIES SERBIA Launched: 2005 Funded by: Italy and EU Safer Cities is a component of the UNHABITAT Settlement and Integration of Refugees Programme (SIRP) in Serbia, which is starting in 6 municipalities in Serbia. The programme consists of three components: Housing, Socio-economic Integration of Refugees and Municipal Development. The Safer Cities approach and methodology will be implemented in the civic integration and crime prevention element of the second component of the programme (Socio- Economic Integration of Refugees). Up SAFER CITIES BANGLADESH Launched: 2003 Funded by: UNDP Safer Cities is since 2002 collaborating with the Local Partnership for Urban Poverty Alleviation Project in Bangladesh, funded by UNDP and executed by UN-HABITAT. The Project is based on the premises that urban poor, especially women, can break away from the vicious cycle of poverty if they are empowered and supported by Government, Local Governments and NGOs. The project is implemented in 11 locations across the country. Development With women as one key target, the project has started to analyze the impact of gender issues and of gender violence on women capacities and opportunities for a meaningful participation in community development. Safer Cities was therefore involved to assist in developing a gender violence and access to legal services for women in the communities. Activities After a series of workshop and action planning activities, Safer Cities in collaboration with the project management has developed a 'Community Safety' component, which seeks to address gender violence through access to legal services, sensitization and debate on cultural dimensions of gender violence, as well as building capacities for communities to assess and respond to violence through prevention. The component is also targeting men and their perceptions and behaviors. Collaboration with the state institutions in charge of security and with Local Government will focus on developing their response capacity in support of communities' efforts. Up PIPELINE ACTIVITIES AFRICA Abuja, Nigeria A draft prodoc has been submitted to the government as follow-up to the preparation of a crime profile of the city. Arusha,Tanzania A victimisation survey is being conducted by partners, in view of the formulation of a project. Kampala, Uganda Identification is ongoing in collaboration with the National Police and the Kampala City Council Marrakech, Morocco Marrakech, where activities have been identified jointly with UMP ASIA Afghanistan An identification mission is being discussed with the Regional Office. Bangladesh A mission conducted in Dec 2002 has developed a proposal for the inclusion of a component targeting violence against women in the Local Partnerships for Urban Poverty Alleviation Project that UN-HABITAT is executing with a government partner with a view to empower urban poor communities In 11 cities in the country. Cambodia Phnom Pen, where planning is ongoing for an identification mission China Shenyang, where a MoU between UN-HABITAT and the Municipality which includes a Safer Cities component has been signed Philippines A project proposal has been prepared and discussed with the Philippine Urban Forum (PUF), the UNDP and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG). As soon as the local partners agree on the project sites, Safer Cities will be implemented in three cities as a component of the national action agenda for the implementation of the Good Urban Governance and Secure Tenure campaigns. Various donor agencies have expressed keen interest in supporting such a Safer Cities initiative. LATIN AMERICA Chile Several cities, under the umbrella of UMP and/or the Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean, are seeking assistance on security issues and exploratory level activities and/or missions are ongoing Safer Cities has undertaken the evaluation of the National ‘Safer Cities’ programme (Comuna Segura) and will in future provide assistance to the government on urban crime prevention. EASTERN EUROPE Russia The city of Pskov has requested assistance on issues of youth and drug. A mission will be organised as soon as more detailed information are received from the city. Serbia A component on urban safety is included in the existing Habitat programme in Serbia and is being presently formulated. Up HOME