Division Description

Based on the findings of the national consultative workshops, and under the coordination of UNREC, UNMAS experts and MAG experts will conduct detailed and practical assessments of the selected sample facilities to identify current practices and issues, using ISACS and IATG as the basis. In these pilot sites, experts will also verify current national practices in light of the existing national legislation and procedures and suggest their review as necessary.

UNMAS and MAG experts will work in countries where they have ongoing operations. UNMAS will work in Mali under the framework of its current operation and mandate in the country; and MAG will work in Burkina Faso, Chad, Mauritania, Niger and Nigeria. Operations will take place in cooperation with the National Commissions on SALW. The activity will include an assessment of the suitability of infrastructure and physical security, conditions of SALW and ammunition stockpiles, current practices on their transportation, and, with the support of and in agreement with national authorities, the identification of surplus, obsolete or illicit conventional weapons and ammunition contained in the depots. Furthermore, an assessment of the qualification and capacity of personnel at the depots will be conducted to identify possible training needs. In conducting these assessments, use will be made of the ISACS Assessment Tool and the MAG Armoury Risk Assessment tool. At the request of the beneficiary State concerned, ad hoc trainings on PSSM can be conducted at the selected sample facilities to respond to urgent needs.

The security situation is diverse within the targeted countries. The level of ongoing activities on PSSM varies in each country depending on the national resources they have available, and the support they receive from international donors and partners. In order to benefit from ongoing efforts and identify best practices, the PSSM component of the project will begin in two countries and then will be further extended, in phases, to the remaining ones.