The state of the world, marked by violence and conflict, underlines the need to prioritise the prevention and reduction of armed violence. According the Small Arms Survey, over one billion Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) are circulating worldwide, causing the death of approximately 210 000 people every year.
While SALW are not the source of conflicts, they are violence multipliers contributing to prolonged armed conflicts in all parts of the world. As such, prioritising the issue of uncontrolled proliferation of SALW is key to sustainable development, conflict prevention and the promotion of peace and security. Armed violence has high human, social and economic costs both in and outside conflicts. It causes death and injuries, contributes to human rights violations and threatens democracy and good governance. The availability and misuse of SALW negatively impacts on human security and the wellbeing of children and youth and intensifies gender-based violence. Moreover, increased allocation of resources to address the effects of armed violence drains resources away from educational, social and economic development.
Given the complexity of the issue and in light of their three key roles related to legislation, over-sight and awareness raising, parliamentarians play a central role in prevention and reduction of SALW related violence. However, increased parliamentary capacity is necessary to strengthen action towards more peaceful and developed societies. As the only international platform supporting parliamentary action across party political lines against SALW related violence, the Parliamentary Forum on Small Arms and Light Weapons plays a vital role in bridging the gap between international arms control instruments and the regional and national implementation level.
Three international frameworks constitute the point of departure in the work of the Forum. The 2030 Agenda from 2015 with its Sustainable Development Goal 16.4 on the importance to reduce illicit arms flows, the legally binding Arms Trade Treaty regulation arms transfers that entered into force 2014, and the United Nations Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects , adopted in 2001.