Citizen Security: Conceptual Framework and Empirical Evidence

Given the strong ties linking citizen security and the development of Latin America and the Caribbean, the Bank has been supporting efforts to tackle crime and violence. It has framed its work in citizen security through the establishment of specific guidelines (Operational Guidelines for Program Design and Execution in the Area of Civic Coexistence and Public Safety, GN-2535), which identify the Bank's areas of support, as well as those outside its mandate and those for which it does not have a comparative advantage as a development institution. It has also developed the present Conceptual Framework, to complement the Operational Guidelines, by reviewing a group of concepts to provide focus, rationale, and tools to integrate and interpret information relevant to the citizen security policies and under the spectrum defined by the Guidelines. The Conceptual Framework is intended as a tool to guide the analyses of the sector, drawing from a growing empirical knowledge base of "what works" in crime and violence prevention.