Countering Cartel Recruitment in Mexico

The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs of the U.S. Department of State is seeking applications to carry out a project aimed at reducing recruitment by organized crime groups in Mexico. The project will advance U.S. security interests by promoting a comprehensive approach that includes prevention, prosecution, and legal reform. The initiative will engage stakeholders in key Mexican states to implement intelligence-driven prevention strategies, strengthen public advocacy, enhance prosecutorial capacity, support disengagement programs, and advance legislative reform to criminalize organized crime recruitment. • The project will focus on six priority states in Mexico: Sinaloa, Sonora, Tamaulipas, Jalisco, Michoacan, and Guerrero. • The project will engage stakeholders, including government officials, civil society organizations, and community leaders, to implement prevention strategies and strengthen public advocacy. • The project will support disengagement programs for recruited youth to abandon organized crime. • The project will advance legislative reform to criminalize organized crime recruitment. • The project will enhance prosecutorial capacity to investigate and prosecute cases related to organized crime recruitment.