The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) has conducted a Workshop for Customs Authorities on Technical Aspects of the Implementation of the Chemicals Transfer Regime, which was held at the OPCW headquarters in The Hague from 4 to 5 October 2005.
In total, 82 participants from fifty States Parties attended the workshop. In addition, representatives from the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), the World Customs Organisation (WCO) and the Port Authority of Rotterdam also participated in the meeting.
In his opening address to the Workshop, Ambassador Rogelio Pfirter, the OPCW Director-General, noted the crucial role that customs authorities play in the effective implementation of the Convention. He stressed that through the exchange of experience and information provided by the Workshop, the OPCW aimed to improve senior customs authorities’ understanding of the requirements of the Chemical Weapons Convention, particularly those relating to the import and export of relevant chemicals.
Director-General Pfirter hoped that the participants would acquire an in-depth understanding of the measures that each customs authority is required to undertake to comply with the provisions of the Convention, as well as to gain insight into the practices being followed by other Member States’ customs authorities.
Representatives from more than twenty participating Member States, as well as representatives from UNEP, WCO and the Port Authority of Rotterdam, provided presentations on specific implementation-related issues, including addressing areas which would benefit from cooperation between the OPCW and the other international organisations dealing with chemical substances.
This workshop was funded by the European Union Joint Action Plan. The Joint Action Plan provides support in the framework of the European Union strategy against proliferation of weapons of mass destruction to the OPCW’s activities, which aim to enhance the effective implementation of the Convention.
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