Global Organized Crime Index 2023
A fractured world
Press Kit
The Index's key findings show that the gap between criminality and resilience is growing.
Today, 83% of the world's population lives in countries with high crime — a sobering increase from 79% in 2021.
By contrast, a comparison of resilience over the past two years reveals that the global average has remained largely stable, with a score of 4.81 out of 10.
In particular, the role of non-state actors as resilience agents has declined the most. These actors, including the media, are vital in holding state institutions to account and serve as integral components in communities affected by organized crime.
Average global resilience scores by indicator
Average global resilience scores by indicator
The second edition of the Index includes data from 2022 on criminality and resilience against organized crime for all 193 UN member states.
It shows how organized crime and resilience have changed in the last two years since the first Index was released.
In an effort to enhance readability and optimize the overall user experience, the Global Initiative has chosen to deliver the 2023 Global Organized Crime Index in a digital format. Our shift to a dynamic, interactive, web-based format makes the wealth of data and insights found within the report more accessible and navigable. This evolution reflects GI-TOC's commitment to leveraging technological advancements for effective and user-friendly communication of analytical information.
We believe this enhancement not only improves the individual reading experience but also empowers journalists, policymakers, scholars, and all our users to interact with, draw from, and share this information more effectively.
The Index shows how major political shifts and economic hardship have fed directly into organized crime dynamics around the world as criminal groups take advantage of instability, vulnerability and commodity shortages.
Financial crimes were the most pervasive illicit economy globally in 2022, ranking among the top three criminal markets in every continent besides the Americas, where it is one of the top five. Human trafficking, cannabis and arms trafficking were the next most prominent criminal markets.
COUNTRIES UNDER HIGH INFLUENCE OF FINANCIAL CRIMES (SCORES EQUAL TO OR GREATER THAN 5.50)
COUNTRIES UNDER HIGH INFLUENCE OF FINANCIAL CRIMES (SCORES EQUAL TO OR GREATER THAN 5.50)
State involvement in criminality remains the most pervasive force in driving organized crime. Criminal actors are also taking advantage of the disruption presented by conflict. Many of the most crime-affected countries in 2022, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Myanmar, Ethiopia, and most recently Ukraine, have been mired in conflict and instability over the past decades.
The updated Index has expanded to 15 different criminal markets, including financial and cyber-dependent crimes, and, for the first time, covers the involvement of private sector actors. A comparative analysis with the data from 2020 suggests that:
- Asia, which includes Western Asia, South-Eastern Asia, Southern Asia, Eastern Asia and Central Asia and the Caucasus, shows the highest levels of organized crime of all the continents.
- Europe shows the greatest continental increase in criminality owing to the inclusion of financial and cybercrimes in the Index, but also saw increases in human and arms trafficking, environmental crimes and drug crimes.
- Africa saw the smallest continental increase in criminality between 2020 and 2022, but still saw growth in 10 criminal markets.
- Financial crimes, such as fraud and embezzlement, displaced human trafficking as the most pervasive illicit economy in 2022. Nevertheless, human trafficking has also increased since 2020.
- Some regions saw a decrease in overall crime, including Eastern and Central Asia, and West and Central Africa.
“Countries around the globe have been forced to reckon with a new reality: a reality where organized crime has shown no sign of slowing down. Instead, criminal groups have quickly adapted and seized fresh opportunities”
The launch of the Global Organized Crime Index 2023
Press Conference @Geneva Press Club
The Global Initiative recently held a pre-launch press conference at the Geneva Press Club on September 20 as part of its media engagement strategy around the 2023 Global Organized Crime Index.
The conference provided an exclusive preview of the key findings to an audience of Swiss and international press members.
The Index provides insight into how criminality reacts and adapts to its environment and, importantly, on where responses have been successful and where they have fallen short.
We encourage all those interested in reducing the harm caused by organized crime to use the evidence presented in this report as a tool to effect change.
If you have any questions about our tool and report or want to discuss a specific topic, please don't hesitate to request a meeting with the Index team.
We will happily meet you and provide more information about our methodology and key findings.
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