EU Statement at UN Crime Congress workshop on strengthening data collection and analysis to better protect people and planet in times of new, emerging and evolving forms of crime, 28 September 2026

Chair,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

The European Union welcomes the organisation of this workshop and thanks UNODC and the Thailand Institute of Justice for convening us to discuss the important issue of strengthening data collection and analysis, in order to better protect people and the planet in times of new, emerging and evolving forms of crime. 

Reliable, timely and high-quality data are essential for effective crime prevention, fair and efficient criminal justice systems, and evidence-based policymaking. Stronger data systems are indispensable to understanding patterns of crime, identifying emerging risks, allocating resources effectively and assessing the impact of our responses.

As crime evolves, so too must our methods of understanding it. Traditional sources of data remain valuable, but at the same time, they should be complemented by a broader range of data sources and analytical methods to better capture complex and often underreported crimes, including cybercrime, trafficking in persons, smuggling of migrants, fraud and crimes affecting the environment. 

For the European Union, strengthening crime data systems means improving quality, comparability and timeliness, while fully respecting fundamental rights, privacy, data protection and data security. Data collection and analysis must reinforce public trust, not undermine it. At EU level, several tools contribute to this effort. Eurostat supports the development of comparable statistical information while eu-LISA manages and develops the EU’s large-scale IT systems, ensuring their operational continuity, security and interoperability. Europol, including through its Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment, helps identify criminal trends, emerging risks and cross-border threats through a mixed method approach. EMPACT further supports coordinated responses based on shared threat analysis.

Recently adopted EU legislation in criminal law, such as the 2026 revised Victims’ Rights Directive, contains specific provisions on systems for data collection on victims and types of crimes, as well as to enhance the reporting by victims, which remains a key source of data and evidence to guide policy.

Chair,

The European Union remains committed to working with international partners, including through UNODC, to support capacity-building, international cooperation to develop data-driven, rights-based approaches to crime prevention and criminal justice. 

We welcome these discussions and look forward to the conclusions by the Chair.

Thank you