Uzbekistan will host 2031 UN crime prevention congress
Uzbekistan will host the 16th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in 2031 after member states unanimously approved the bid at the current international gathering in the United Arab Emirates, Saida Mirziyoyeva confirmed on Monday.
The decision was stated in the declaration of the 15th Congress in Abu Dhabi, establishing a five-year roadmap for the Central Asian nation to prepare and stage the world’s largest gathering on criminal justice and penal reform.
Saida Mirziyoyeva, Head of the Presidential Administration of Uzbekistan, announced the endorsement following bilateral and multilateral meetings in the Emirati capital.
«I perceive this as an important sign of international trust in Uzbekistan,» Mirziyoyeva said. «It demonstrates confidence in our openness, our readiness to conduct dialogue and our commitment to combine efforts toward a shared objective.»
On the sidelines of this year’s meeting, Mirziyoyeva met with United Nations Under-Secretary-General Monica Juma, Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Their discussion addressed expanding existing initiatives between Tashkent and the UNODC, prioritising technical assistance for judicial modernisation, regional border management and coordinated counter-narcotics operations across Central Asia.
Five-year runway to 2031 congress
Convened every five years since 1955, the UN Crime Congress functions as the premier multilateral mechanism for developing global criminal policy, model statutes and binding international conventions. The resolutions and policy frameworks negotiated during each session serve as structural templates for national penal codes, extradition treaties and inter-agency intelligence coordination.
Securing the 2031 host role reflects Uzbekistan’s broader diplomatic drive to establish itself as a central platform for international multilateralism. Officials in Tashkent will now begin half a decade of logistical and policy coordination with the UN Secretariat to accommodate thousands of international delegates, cabinet ministers and legal scholars.
The upcoming 16th congress will mark the first time the global assembly convenes in Central Asia, placing regional judicial development and cross-border security cooperation directly on the international agenda.
