Mexico Crime and Violence Prevention Program (CVPP) Quarterly Report (April – June 2013)

The program is being implemented under Contract No. AID-523-TO-12-00001 by Tetra Tech, with Yemile Mizrahi serving as the Senior Technical Advisor/Manager. The CVPP is focused on strengthening the capacity of federal, state, and local governments to prevent and reduce crime. The program is divided into two intermediate results: IR1, which aims to strengthen federal civic planning capacity to prevent and reduce crime, and IR2, which seeks to strengthen the capacity of state and local governments to implement crime prevention and reduction initiatives. Under IR1, the CVPP has been working with the Government of Mexico (GOM) to improve monitoring and evaluation and knowledge sharing to inform national violence prevention and reduction policies. The program has also been supporting the GOM's Multi-Sectoral Pillar IV Working Group to develop a model for social programs and policies for crime and violence prevention in urban areas. Additionally, the CVPP has been promoting the exchange of experiences with the Program for Gang Prevention and Youth Development (GRYD) in Los Angeles, California. The CVPP has also been working on IR2, which involves developing crime and violence master plans in target communities, supporting urban and social planning strategies to strengthen crime and violence prevention, and promoting community policing to improve relationships between municipal police and communities. The program has also been supporting local organizations to implement community healing and victims' programs, as well as mechanisms to disrupt the path of youth to criminality. The CVPP has made significant progress in the third quarter of 2013, including the selection of a creative organization to develop the message for the community communication strategy, the negotiation of terms with the selected organization, and the continuation of the process of selecting implementing organizations in each city. The program has also contributed to positioning the agenda of violence and crime prevention in Washington D.C. and Monterrey through various high-profile events and communication instruments. The CVPP has been working closely with the GOM, USAID, and other stakeholders to achieve its objectives. The program has also been promoting the exchange of experiences and best practices with other countries and organizations to inform its work. The CVPP's efforts have been recognized by representatives of the US Congress and the Executive, who have visited the program's sites in Ciudad Juárez and Monterrey to learn about its activities and progress. The CVPP's work has been focused on several key areas, including addiction to drugs, prison population, citizen security, community policing, youth, social policies, monitoring and evaluation, and situational prevention. The program has also been working to develop a national prevention program, which will be published in August 2013. The CVPP's activities have been supported by a team of experts, who have been contracted to assist in the development of the program. The CVPP's progress has been documented in the quarterly report, which provides an overview of the program's activities and achievements during the third quarter of 2013. The report highlights the program's efforts to strengthen the capacity of federal, state, and local governments to prevent and reduce crime, as well as its contributions to positioning the agenda of violence and crime prevention in Washington D.C. and Monterrey.