The Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the United Nations (UN), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) formally launched two landmark regional documents: the CARICOM–UNDP Diagnostic Document and the Proposed CARICOM–UN Framework for Action, establishing a shared and coordinated implementation path for confronting crime and violence across the CARICOM through a public health lens, a press release informed.
Caricom Undp Diagnostic Document
Prevention: A System-Level Reframing
The launch, held in Basseterre on 21–22 May 2026, brought together government representatives, regional institutions, the UN system, civil society, academics and international development partners. The two instruments shared at the launch were developed through a sustained process of regional consultation and represent a multi-sector commitment to prevention-oriented security governance in CARICOM.
Honourable Dr Terrance Drew, Prime Minister of St Kitts and Nevis and Chair of CARICOM, explained that one of the most difficult challenges in advancing a preventative approach to crime and violence is not necessarily proving the science behind it, but convincing leadership structures and the wider society to embrace a shift away from viewing crime solely through the lens of policing and punishment.
He stated that “Nothing can really be done unless there is political will. Political will is what allows us to implement policies and to put whatever is necessary behind them. To see CARICOM and the United Nations now throwing their weight behind the preventative approach for the Caribbean, I am hopeful because I know this will work. And if this framework is implemented, the next decade, when it comes to crime and violence in the Caribbean,will be much better than the previous decade.”