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UN PhotoABU DHABI / 15 UN CRIME CONGRESS
STORY: ABU DHABI / 15th UN CRIME CONGRESS
TRT: 03:18
SOURCE: UNIS VIENNA
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH/ARABIC/NATS
DATELINE: 26 SEPTEMBER 2026, ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (UAE)
1. Various wide shots, external conference signage in Abu Dhabi
2. Various wide shots, United Nations and United Arab Emirates (UAE) flags and interior conference signage
3. Various shots, group of drummers playing
4. Wide shot, Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Monica Juma arriving and walking inside Crime Congress venue
5. Various shots, delegates in Plenary Hall
6. Various shots of podium in Plenary Hall
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Monica Juma: “I have just returned from the high-level week of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where there was a clear consensus around the need for multilateral action against transnational organized crime.”
8. Various shots, Plenary Hall
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Amina Mohamed (video statement): “Justice cannot be a privilege. It must protect every person, uphold every person’s rights and leave no one behind. This also means confronting the realities of the digital age.”
10. Various wide shots, podium in Plenary Hall
11. Wide shot, delegates clapping in Plenary Hall
12. Medium shot, Executive Director of UNODC Monica Juma on podium
13. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) President of the 15th UN Crime Congress, Abdullah Sultan Bin Awad Al Nuami, Minister of Justice of the UAE: “We look forward to this Congress culminating in the adoption of the Abu Dhabi Declaration as an ambitious, strategic framework to guide joint international action in crime prevention, criminal justice, and the rule of law over the next five years.”
14. Various shots, Plenary Hall
15. Wide shot, Executive Director of UNODC Monica Juma greets Saida Mirziyoyeva Head of the Presidential Administration of Uzbekistan
16. SOUNDBITE (English) Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Monica Juma: “Beyond simply accelerating criminal activities, technology is changing the character of crime itself and even transforming the way familiar crimes are committed.”
17. Various shots, Plenary Hall
18. Wide pan shot, bilateral meeting in a room with Executive Director of UNODC Monica Juma and delegation from Thailand
19. SOUNDBITE (English) Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Monica Juma: “Just as the challenges we face demand more international cooperation, faith in that cooperation is being tested in some quarters. But we cannot afford to retreat into our corners at a time when threats are converging across borders, across regions, and globally.”
The Fifteenth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice opened today (26 Sep) with the adoption of the Abu Dhabi Declaration, a forward-looking global framework to strengthen international criminal justice cooperation against fast-evolving crime challenges and exploitation of digital technologies.
In the Declaration, adopted by acclamation, Member States highlight concerns about emerging trends in an increasingly complex criminal landscape, including crime as a service and violence as a service, and exploitation of cyberinfrastructure and cybertechnology. They call for action against threats including cybercrime and fraud, and commit to digitalizing justice systems and harnessing technologies, including artificial intelligence in criminal justice responses, while maintaining safeguards such as human oversight, transparency, due process and data protection.
The Congress represents the world’s largest gathering of policymakers, civil society and other stakeholders in the field of crime prevention and criminal justice. Amina Mohamed, United Nations Deputy Secretary-General, in a video message to the Congress, emphasized that the Crime Congress is taking place at a time of profound change.
“Justice cannot be a privilege. It must protect every person, uphold every person’s rights and leave no one behind,” said Ms. Mohamed. “This Congress is an opportunity to renew our shared commitment to justice and the rule of law, and to translate that commitment into action.”
“Today, the world convenes in Abu Dhabi to reaffirm that the rule of law and criminal justice are essential to the safety and security of people and the planet,” said Monica Juma, the Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), in her opening remarks. “At a time when confidence in multilateralism is faltering, let Abu Dhabi be a testament to international cooperation.”
UNODC serves as secretariat for the Crime Congress and will support the implementation of the Abu Dhabi Declaration.
The 15th Crime Congress is hosted by the Government of the United Arab Emirates. Some 119 countries are represented at the Congress, with more than 40 ministers of justice and other high-level officials and more than 5,100 participants from Member States, the private sector, civil society and academia.
The Congress, under the theme ‘Protecting People and Planet in the Digital Age’, will continue until 1 October with the plenary sessions, workshops and an array of side events and exhibitions. It is the most youth-inclusive Crime Congress in history, with young leaders of tomorrow delivering a statement during the opening session, participating as panellists in the workshops and helping to shape the follow-up to the Congress to advance crime prevention and criminal justice action in their countries. The Youth Forum of the 15th UN Crime Congress was held on 24 and 25 September ahead of the Congress and there is a Youth Lab featuring youth-led events and a Youth art exhibition.
Member States are also taking steps at the Congress to realize the commitments contained in the Declaration with the voluntary Pledge4Justice initiative. Participating countries are announcing specific, concrete and time-bound actions to advance crime prevention and criminal justice until 2031. The pledges will be published on the UNODC website: unodc.org
