The 14th United Nations Congress
on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
(The Kyoto Congress)

What is the UN Crime Congress?

The 13th UN Crime Congress in Doha

The UN Crime Congress, held once every five years since 1955, is one of the largest conferences of the UN in the field of crime prevention and criminal justice. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) serves as the secretariat of the UN Crime Congress.

Since 1955, the United Nations congresses on crime prevention and criminal justice have brought together high-level representatives of governments, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, and criminal justice professionals and scholars to discuss common concerns, share experiences and seek solutions in the field of crime prevention and criminal justice.

The most recent UN Crime Congress, held in Doha, Qatar in 2015, was attended by approximately 4,000 participants from 150 countries. The participants included the Emir of the State of Qatar, H.H. Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad AL-THANI, and the then UN Secretary-General, H.E. Mr. Ki-moon Ban.

The UN Crime Congress discusses topics of international concern in the field of crime prevention and criminal justice. The UN Crime Congress will adopt a political declaration that will set the crime prevention and criminal justice agenda for the next five years.

The Kyoto Congress

Date/Venue

Kyoto International Conference Center
Date:
March 7 to 12, 2021
Venue:
Kyoto International Conference Center (ICC Kyoto)
Takaragaike, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 06-0001, Japan
TEL:
+81(0)75-705-1229 FAX:+81(0)75-705-1100

The UN Crime Congress will return to Kyoto after half a century

The 4th UN Crime Congress in 1970

Japan was the first non-European country to host the UN Crime Congress. In 2021, the UN Crime Congress will return to Kyoto after half a century.

The Overall Theme

At the Kyoto Congress, effective measures to deal with threats faced by international society, such as organized crime, corruption and terrorism, will be discussed under the overall theme “Advancing crime prevention, criminal justice and the rule of law: towards the achievement of the 2030 Agenda”. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which is called the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), was adopted at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit on 25 September 2015.

The Overall theme and agenda items of the Kyoto Congress [PDF:36KB]

“Justice Affairs Diplomacy”

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development pledges our shared commitment to make the world a place where “no one will be left behind”. Policies and initiatives of the Ministry of Justice are highly pertinent to Goal 16 of the 2030 Agenda, which highlights the goal of realizing a peaceful and just society and the rule of law. The Ministry of Justice of Japan is engaging in “Justice Affairs Diplomacy” to promote the rule of law across the globe as a universal value. By hosting the Kyoto Congress, Japan hopes to showcase “Justice Affairs Diplomacy” as an innovative initiative to strengthen the rule of law within Japanese society and throughout the international community.