A regional training workshop on advancing joint responses to youth crime brought together 25 practitioners representing law enforcement, social services, and youth affairs agencies from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan on 2 and 3 March in Koi-Tash, Kyrgyzstan. The event was organized by the OSCE Secretariat's Transnational Threats Department and the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities, in close co-operation with OSCE field operations in the four countries.
Over two days, participants discussed ways to strengthen co-operation between police and social services working with young people at risk. The workshop combined strategic discussions with hands-on exercises, drawing on approaches, such as the German 'Kurve Kriegen' youth crime prevention initiative.
Participants worked through practical scenarios to improve case assessment and prioritization, while also identifying opportunities for earlier engagement with vulnerable youth. Particular attention was given to strengthening referral mechanisms and reinforcing institutional co-operation to ensure timely and co-ordinated interventions.
"It is crucial to strengthen co-operation between the police, social services, and youth affairs specialists in order to identify at-risk youth at an early stage. This regional exchange of experience enables us to further develop more effective and comprehensive approaches to youth crime prevention in the national contexts," said Nurzhan Adylova, Head of the Public Security Service Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic.
Participants also identified potential follow-up measures, including exploring national pilot initiatives, strengthening interagency communication, and fostering regular dialogue among stakeholders at the local level. Discussions underlined the importance of long-term commitment, trust-building, and consistent interagency collaboration to address youth crime effectively.
The training was organized within the framework of the OSCE-wide extrabudgetary project " Enhancing youth crime and drug use prevention through education on legality and awareness campaigns addressing threats of organized crime and corruption ", funded by Germany, with additional support from Andorra, Finland, Italy, Norway, Poland, and Thailand.
