Vision and Mission

The Small Arms Survey's vision is a world without illicit arms and armed violence.

Our Mission

The Small Arms Survey strengthens the capacity of governments and practitioners to reduce illicit arms flows and armed  violence through three mutually reinforcing activities: the generation of policy-relevant knowledge, the development of  authoritative resources and tools, and the provision of training and other services.

The Survey's two main work streams

Data and Analytics

The Small Arms Survey conducts extensive research on global trends in small arms and armed violence with the aim of providing international and national stakeholders with the data required to have an informed debate and make evidence-based policy decisions. Our established and reliable methodologies enable us to deliver data and analysis that inform the development and monitoring of international and national initiatives.

The Data and Analytics (DnA) unit's primary goal is to enable the broader small arms community (or specific regional and national partners) to use reliable and consistent information to make decisions. Projects and activities in this thematic area are primarily geared towards gathering and providing information and developing methodologies for research and analysis.

Data and analytics projects may have a global outlook or a specific regional or national focus. Their main output may be data, information, and analysis, or new or modified methodologies.

Read more about Data and Analytics

Policy and Capacity Support

The Small Arms Survey provides research-informed policy advice to enable the development and implementation of international and regional mechanisms and processes that contain principles, norms, and practices to effectively combat the illicit flow of small arms and ammunition and reduce the impact of armed violence.

The Policy and Capacity Support (PACS) unit monitors and evaluates different approaches, programmes, and projects to identify effective practices and standards for operationalizing international and regional mechanisms and processes. The Survey uses this evidence base to develop and disseminate tools and resources to develop capacity at the international, regional, and national levels.

The unit’s projects and activities include research, outreach and information sharing, and capacity support. The unit often directly supports a specific partner to develop, implement, monitor, or change small arms and armed violence strategies, policies, or practices. The outputs of the unit include policy recommendations and guidance, strategies and action plans, increased capacity, and monitoring and evaluation reports.

Read more about Policy and Capacity Support