The Southern Mediterranean region’s strategic geographical position makes it a key transit and destination area for trafficking and other cross-border criminal activities. Fragile institutions, conflict-related instability, and socio-economic disparities further exacerbate vulnerabilities to organised crime. Addressing transnational organised crime (TOC), with a focus on trafficking in human beings and migrant smuggling, trafficking and destruction of cultural property, and counterfeiting of medical products, is essential for regional stability and security.

In these areas the Council of Europe conventions offer comprehensive, rights-based legal frameworks that support national authorities in building effective prevention, protection, and prosecution mechanisms.
Based on this expertise, the action will target notably criminal justice actors with a focus on:

• Aligning national normative TOC frameworks with international human rights and rule of standards to promote legal harmonisation and institutional resilience in effectively addressing evolving criminal threats;
• Strengthening international and cross-border operational cooperation by facilitating peer-to-peer exchanges and cooperation between the Southern Mediterranean partners and relevant international and regional networks as well as Council of Europe specialised bodies, such as the European Committee on Crime Problems (CDPC), the Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA), and the Committee of the Parties of the MEDICRIME Convention;
• Strengthening technical and operational capacities through targeted capacity building measures and practical exercises, such as simulation-based training.