International Visitors Program: 2003
One of the busiest components of the International Center's activities is the International Visitor Program. In 2003, the International Center coordinated and/or participated in 37 meetings at the Office of Justice Programs and the National Institute of Justice. These meetings informed 122 visitors from 39 different countries about NIJ. The number of visitors and meetings is the highest in the last three years. The number of visitor countries of origin is the most since the program began in 1997. The meetings provided opportunities for NIJ and other OJP agency staff to discuss their ongoing work with specialists and experts from other countries. International visitors also provide valuable insight into the experiences of their own countries' criminal justice activities. Most importantly, these meetings gave OJP and NIJ a chance to disseminate information on cutting edge criminal justice research and programs on a one-to-one basis, which allows the creation of future international contacts and collaboration.
Visitor countries of origin are listed below:
- Albania
- Czech Republic
- Japan
- Russia
- Argentina
- Ecuador
- Kazakhstan
- Serbia
- Armenia
- Egypt
- Kosovo
- South Africa
- Australia
- El Salvador
- Latvia
- Spain
- Brazil
- Finland
- Lithuania
- Tanzania
- Canada
- France
- Netherlands
- Tunisia
- Chile
- Guatemala
- Nigeria
- Ukraine
- China
- India
- Paraguay
- United Kingdom
- Colombia
- Israel
- Peru
- Venezuela
- Costa Rica
- Jamaica
- Qatar
In 2003, The United States State Department requested 26 meetings through the International Center. One third of these requests were meetings with visitors working against trafficking in humans, an International Center research priority. Two other meetings requested by the State Department concerned the use of forensic and DNA technology to assist in the identification of persons killed in violent conflict. The International Center also helped coordinate briefing programs at the request of the Indian and Israeli Embassies.. The International Center also welcomed for the first time visitors from Albania, Armenia, Jamaica, Kosovo, Qatar, and Serbia.
When requested, the International Center coordinated meetings with other Department of Justice components as well as with agencies and programs outside of the Department of Justice and the Office of Justice Programs.