ICMA will help Central American municipalities develop innovative violence prevention programs, thanks to a new $1.5 million cooperative agreement with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

The new program, Municipal Partnerships for Violence Prevention in Central America, starts immediately and continues through September 2012. With an initial focus on programming in El Salvador and Panama, it seeks to establish sustainable networks that share best practices and lessons learned in crime and violence prevention and reduction throughout Central America.

The program has two formal objectives: 

• To promote comprehensive local-level violence prevention strategies and programs with stakeholders and foster development of regional peer knowledge networks that will be self-sustaining in the future.
• To provide training and technical assistance to local governments and community groups in coordination with police and other local-level programs.

In implementing the program, ICMA will build on its experience in Latin American countries, its substantial expertise in community-oriented policing, and its successful international CityLinks model. ICMA has a long history of leading-edge training and publications in community-based public safety and crime prevention, and these will be adapted as appropriate for use in the program.

It is fairly common knowledge that Central American countries suffer from some of the world’s highest crime and violence rates. In many places, the initial governmental response has been heavy-handed legislation and police crackdowns (mano-dura, or “iron fist,” approaches), primarily targeting urban youth. 

Gradually, these approaches have proven to have a limited effect on crime rates, and national governments appear receptive to a more comprehensive approach, incorporating prevention and rehabilitation as well as law enforcement. A pioneer in this regard has been Colombia, where the cities of Bogotá, Medellin, and Cali have implemented comprehensive programs that have led to remarkable decreases in crime and violence rates. 

In most of the region, however, citizen security still tends to be viewed as a national-level responsibility. The reasons include lack of awareness and prioritization of crime prevention in the agenda of municipal authorities, poor information flows and inadequate sharing of best practices among municipalities, institutional weaknesses at the local level, and a generalized lack of communication and coordination between the national police forces and municipal and community leaders. 

Steps toward community-based approaches in many places are also hindered by lack of citizen trust in governmental institutions, police corruption, the prevalence of organized crime, and a culture of violence.

In the midst of these challenges, ICMA has identified some opportunities. Citizen confidence in government institutions in Central America is highest at the municipal level. And the ongoing professionalization of local governments and increased participation of citizens in municipal government have improved over time, creating a foundation for work in this area. 

To overcome the challenges and take advantage of opportunities, ICMA will work with a local partner, the Instituto Para el Desarrollo Local de Centroamerica (Institute for Local Development in Central America, IDELCA). This organization has specifically prioritized citizen security and local development as one of its four fundamental working areas, along with advocacy, training, and research.

Working with IDELCA and other existing institutions, ICMA will engage in outreach and research, develop tools for use in crime and violence prevention programs, facilitate the participation of experts in regional and international conferences, and conduct workshops for municipal associations and municipal stakeholders, and undertake other activities designed to build a long-lasting regional peer knowledge network. Network members will include local government, the private sector, civil society representatives, law enforcement, academia, and the national government. 

At the same time, ICMA will promote peer-to-peer learning through CityLinks partnerships in a small number of pilot locations. Central American municipalities will be paired with cities in the United States that have successfully undertaken violence and crime prevention programs, particularly programs that incorporate a community-oriented approach. Thus, the model of community-oriented policing and governance in U.S. cities can be shared with municipalities throughout the region. ICMA will supplement the partnerships with training that provides participants with a greater understanding of community-oriented public safety concepts and introduces them to experiences from other countries.

Selection criteria for the pilot jurisdictions will include existing crime rates and future projections, established political will of municipal authorities to work on violence prevention issues, commitment of local police leaders, levels of citizen participation and involvement, and overall security concerns. 

A modest financial incentive fund will be accessible to pilot and non-pilot municipalities to help them pay the costs of innovative municipal based violence prevention initiatives that incorporate the municipality, law enforcement, and citizen groups. 

ICMA has worked in Central America since 1991. In addition to country-based programs in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, ICMA administered the USAID-funded Regional Partnership for Decentralization and Local Governance in the Americas. Through this initiative (1998-2006), ICMA worked to promote best practices and share leading-edge technologies aimed at strengthening democracy and local governance.

For additional information, contact international@icma.org.