Africa and the OPCW

• Foreword
• Africa and the Organs of the OPCW
• Benefits to Africa from OPCW's International Cooperation and Assistance Programmes
• OPCW Events in Africa
• Status of African Participation in the CWC

Africa is a major stakeholder in the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). This publication lists some of the benefits which membership in the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) has brought to States Parties in Africa.

The goal of the OPCW is to free the world of chemical weapons, and 188 countries —including 50 in Africa— have now joined forces to achieve it. This goal is enshrined in the Convention, which entered into force on 29 April 1997.

But achieving global chemical disarmament remains a formidable challenge and the threat posed by chemical weapons is still real. They can be more easily produced and stockpiled than other forms of weapons of mass destruction and present a clear danger to all people, especially in areas of conflict. They also pose a particular risk in the hands of terrorists. Ensuring their complete elimination is not a task that can be dealt with only by some; it requires action by the entire international community.

A chemical weapons-free world will only be achieved when all countries join the Convention and implement it fully. The development, production, stockpiling, transfer or use of chemical weapons must be criminalised in every country.

The Convention benefits all nations by eliminating a common threat and enhancing mutual trust. It is non-discriminatory and mandates the OPCW to deliver concrete support to all Member States. Nations that are threatened by chemical attack, or actually suffer such an attack, can call upon the OPCW's assistance and protection.

The OPCW promotes the peaceful uses of chemistry and international cooperation to facilitate the exchange of scientific and technical information among States Parties. These programmes yield real economic benefits.

The OPCW also provides implementation support for States Parties in this region to ensure that the national infrastructure needed to effectively implement the Convention is established. This team effort serves to strengthen both regional and international security and to bolster each State Party's regulatory framework. This work brings real economic benefits as well.

In January 2006, the African Union and the OPCW signed a Memorandum of Understanding that underscores their continuing cooperation in the Convention’s implementation.

In the Second Review Conference of the Chemical Weapons Convention which took place in April 2008, OPCW Member States comprehensively reviewed the operations of the CWC and provided guidelines for its effective implementation in the future.

We look forward to the continued cooperation of the States Parties in the region in implementing the Convention effectively.

Nigeria and South Africa were elected as Vice-Chairs of the Conference at its Thirteenth Session and will hold office until successors are elected at the next regular session. Kenya and Morocco were appointed as members of the Credentials Committee.

Past Chairpersons of the Conference from Africa were:

• H.E. Mr Abuelgasim Abdelwahid Shiekh Idris of Sudan (Twelfth Session, November 2007);
• H.E. Ambassador Noureddine Djoudi of Algeria (First Review Conference, April-May 2003, and Seventh Session, October 2002);
• H.E. Mr Simbarashe S. Mumbengegwi of Zimbabwe (Second Session, December 1997).

Nine African States always represent the African region on the Executive Council, serving on a rotational basis.

For the period 12 May 2009 to 11 May 2010, the African members of the Executive Council are Algeria, Cameroon, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Morocco , Mozambique, Nigeria, South Africa, Sudan and Tunisia. The regional coordinator is South Africa and Sudan is a Vice-Chair.

Past Chairpersons of the Council from Africa were:

• H.E. Mrs H.B. Mkhize of South Africa (2006–2007);
• H.E. Abdel Halim Babu Fatih of the Sudan (2001–2002).

Algeria, Mauritius, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa, Sudan and Tanzania are represented on OPCW subsidiary bodies, including the Advisory Body on Administrative and Financial Matters, the Confidentiality Commission and the Scientific Advisory Board.

The Technical Secretariat assists the Conference of States Parties and the Executive Council and has a staff of about 500 people. It carries out the daily work of implementing the Convention, including conducting inspections.

The contribution of the African States Parties is reflected in a number of senior posts in the Technical Secretariat that are held by nationals from the region, including the Director of the International Cooperation and Assistance Division, the Director of Internal Oversight, the Deputy Legal Adviser, a Senior Legal Officer, and the Head of the Procurement and Support Services branch.

The OPCW has developed a range of programmes to promote international cooperation, implementation support and chemical weapons protection, through extensive consultations with Member States and their National Authorities. These programmes are directly relevant to the needs and priorities of Member States in the region. A general overview of the period from entry into force of the Convention on 29 April 1997 to the present is provided below.

As reported in the opening statement by the OPCW Director-General to the Executive Council at its 56th session, the first basic analytical chemistry course in Africa successfully concluded on 3 April at Protechnik Laboratories, in Pretoria, South Africa. Twelve African chemistry professionals from 11 African countries benefited from the course, which was jointly organised by the OPCW, the South African National Authority, Protechnik Laboratories in South Africa, and the Finnish Institute for the Verification of the Chemical Weapons Convention (VERIFIN).

This course is of particular significance to the OPCW, as it is the first activity covered by the Africa Programme to be undertaken for assistance to nationals from African States at an African institution. I wish to sincerely thank the Government of South Africa, and also Protechnik Laboratories for hosting the course and the South African Council for the Non-Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction for their support to this event. I have to say they not only supported the event, they continue to render strong help to the Technical Secretariat. I would also like to thank VERIFIN and the Government of Finland for their cooperation in this important endeavour.

Furthermore, I would also like to underline that the International Cooperation and Assistance Division (ICA) will continue to organise activities under the Africa Programme in order to offer tailor-made and focused support to States Parties in Africa, with a view to enabling them to enhance their national capacities, as well as to effectively implement the provisions of the Convention.

Under the Conference Support Programme, eight conferences—in Austria, Brazil, China, Croatia, India, Slovenia, South Africa, and Swaziland—were approved for support during the intersessional period. At the same time, the Technical Secretariat sponsored five candidates from Africa under the Laboratory Assistance Programme to attend a course on “The Running and Interpretation of GC-MS Spectra” at the Department of Chemistry, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Nairobi, Kenya, from 2 to 6 March 2009. The course was organised by the Pan Africa Chemistry Network, Kenya, with the support of the Royal Society of Chemistry, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Four interns from Burkina Faso, Ecuador, Madagascar, and Nigeria have been supported under the Internship Support Programme, while the Fifteenth Review Committee for Research Projects considered 25 of the 45 research projects submitted through the International Foundation for Science (IFS), Sweden. In this context, I would like to express my gratitude to the IFS and its supporting institutions for their continued and valuable cooperation with this Organisation. Indeed, as you can see, a number of institutes have continued to render very important support to the OPCW, and I think we all—Member States and ourselves—are deeply grateful to them.

In the area of assistance and protection against chemical weapons, a Technical Secretariat team conducted a successful initial visit to Tunisia from 26 to 27 February 2009 for the preparation of the Assistex III exercise on delivery of assistance, which is scheduled to be held in Tunisia in 2010.

The OPCW’s implementation support programmes assist States Parties to meet their obligations under Article VII of the Convention. The areas of support include establishing National Authorities for effective liaison with the OPCW; taking the necessary steps to enact legislation, including penal legislation, and adopt administrative measures to implement the Convention; identifying declarable chemical industry and trade activities; and submitting accurate declarations.

As reported in the opening statement by the OPCW Director-General to the Executive Council at its 56th session, various activities have also been carried out in the field of implementation support. A subregional training course for customs authorities in East and Southern Africa on the technical aspects of the transfers regime of the Convention was held under the Africa Programme and with the financial support from the Netherlands and Norway, in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, at the beginning of March.

A national training course for customs officials from the Revenue Authority of Malawi, also on the technical aspects of the transfers regime of the Convention took place in Blantyre, Malawi, in the same period, and the Technical Secretariat also participated in the fifth Green Customs Initiative Partners Meeting, held on 26 and 27 January 2009 in Brussels, Belgium.

From 23 to 27 March, the Technical Secretariat, in cooperation with the National Authority of France, organised a basic training course for National Authorities from all five regional groups.

With the notification of the designation of the National Authority of Congo, the number of National Authorities has risen to 179. There remain, therefore, seven States Parties that have not yet notified the OPCW of the designation of their National Authority.

Indonesia has provided information to the effect that its implementing legislation covers all key areas. Three further States Parties—Belgium, Burundi, and Liberia— have informed the Secretariat of the entry into force of their parliamentary implementing legislation.

To top

To top