Opening remarks by Antonia Marie De Meo, Director of UNICRI
Side-Event at the ECOSOC Youth Forum "Protecting Vulnerable Youths from Crime and Violence in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic"
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, Colleagues,
On the 21st and 22nd April 2021, the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) and the Office of the European Union (EU) Counter-Terrorism Coordinator will hold a virtual expert-level meeting to take stock of the recent evolution and potentially emerging trends of the threat posed by ISIL/Al-Qaida inspired terrorism in Europe in light of the spate of attacks throughout 2020 and against the backdrop of COVID-19.
More than 200 security officials across the Caribbean Region will gather for a virtual course on the malicious use of social media by violent non-state actors during COVID-19 on 8th April 2021. The spread of misinformation and disinformation is a threat faced by most CARICOM Member States and is high on the CARICOM agenda.
(Re)building post-pandemic societies: youth using sport to prevent and counter violent extremism
Background
Violent extremists across the ideological spectrum view the COVID-19 crisis as an opportunity for expansion and young people are likely among the most at risk.
The Advisory Board for the newly launched AI for Safer Children Initiative implemented in partnership by UNICRI, through its Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, and the Ministry of Interior of the United Arab Emirates, met virtually for the first time this afternoon.
The National Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) Team of Iraq, led by the National Focal Point, Dr Riad Al Tamimi, organized a workshop to assess the national needs in the CBRN field with remote assistance from the CBRN Centres of Excellence (CBRN CoE) Team, composed of the European Commission, the External Action Service, UNICRI – the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute, and the On-Site Assistance Expert of the EU CBRN CoE for the Middle East region.
During these unprecedented times, the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting all sectors of our society, including sport. Unfortunately, recent research by the UK’s Nottingham Trent University has shown that 80% of female athletes believe that “the growth of women's sport during the pandemic has been hindered by inequalities compared with men's sport”, effectively creating an even greater “gender play gap”. From football to rugby, men’s sports have often been prioritized and restarted earlier than women’s sports.