Learn about the experience of agent Disly Paz, Director of the Statistics Section of the National Civil Police of Guatemala, and the impact of the InfoSegura Project in the fulfillment of her duties.
From a young age, Disly Paz, native of the department of San Marcos, Guatemala, was attracted to the idea of becoming a police officer. Sixteen years ago she realized her dream by joining Guatemala's National Civil Police (PNC).
“I like working with data because they speak for themselves, they don't lie. They are a tool we can have at hand for operational and administrative decision-making,” said Agent Paz, who serves as Director of the Statistics Section.
Her section is responsible for updating the databases of criminal acts that occur in the 22 departments of the country, as well as the number of persons arrested, weapons seized and vehicles recovered, among other data.
Agent Paz was part of the Guatemalan delegation that traveled to Panama from January 23-25 to participate in the II Citizen Security Week, a space for high-level dialogue and exchange of experiences and best practices that contribute to improving citizen security, social cohesion and justice, as well as promoting effective governance.
The annual event is an initiative of USAID's InfoSegura Project with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), which supports countries in the Central America and Dominican Republic region in the use and analysis of data and statistics to develop effective strategies and public policies to prevent crime and improve security.
During the activity, Agent Paz participated as a panelist in the forum “Women and Citizen Security in Central America and the Dominican Republic.”
“Of the 42,000 police officers that make up Guatemala's PNC, 11.84 percent are women. Within the ranks of the institution, we have had a general director, a policewoman. It is not an easy task, but it is also not difficult when we are passionate about what we decide to do,” she said during her participation.
Agent Paz also stated that women are an example of strength, dedication, responsibility and intelligence.
“Many times we have to leave our family. In my case, I leave three children at home. But knowing the problems that afflict society, I go home with more authority to talk to my children and educate them in a way that shows respect to women and, in general, to all citizens,” she said.
Quality Data
Since 2014, the InfoSegura Project has supported the PNC of Guatemala in strengthening its Statistics Section. The support has included the provision of furniture and equipment, technical assistance, and training for its staff.
Agent Paz said that she is the first one to take the courses and to notice the importance of each one of them.
“The courses have enriched our knowledge and helped us to have a clean database, that is, quality data, in a timely and immediate manner,” she assured. “The contribution of the InfoSegura Project has been impressive and has had an enormous impact on the work we do. From the generation of quality data comes a good analysis, and from a good analysis comes a good prevention strategy,” she concluded.