Step by Step: Researching the global distribution of small arms

Around 875 million firearms are in circulation worldwide, with three-quarters of these in civilian hands, according to Small Arms Survey estimates. These widely-cited calculations are the result of an ongoing programme on inventories and stockpiles—started over a decade ago—to gather comprehensive data on the distribution of small arms and light weapons around the world. The programme has developed an ever larger pool of information that was initially scarce and unsystematic, but now can provide increasingly accurate and up-to-date knowledge of small arms and light weapon holdings. In this podcast, Senior Consultant Aaron Karp and Researcher Hannah Dönges discuss the challenges, achievements, and future directions of this initiative.