Division 1.1.3 Project description

The BTWC Review Conferences have regularly asserted that increasing the membership of the BTWC is of great importance. However, there are still 15 States not party to the BTWC, mostly in Africa and the Pacific. This project therefore involves specific programmes to target four States which are signatories but not yet party to the BTWC in order to achieve substantive progress in their ratification/accession process. Those programmes would work closely with other relevant actors, including the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the Committee established under the UN Security Council Resolution 1540 (2004), the EU CBRN Centres of Excellence and civil society organisations (for example the Verification Research, Training and Information Centre (VERTIC), Parliamentarians for Global Action and the Institute for Security Studies) to develop ongoing working relationships with relevant regional and sub-regional bodies, provide tailored informational materials where necessary and engage directly with States in the targeted region.

A number of in-country universalisation activities will be conducted in four States not party to the BTWC. Those countries will be selected based on actual prospects with respect to ratification/accession at the time of the adoption of this Decision. Those activities would build on the discussions and outcomes from previous regional workshops, transferring them to a national context, and be tailored to national circumstances. They would involve the preparation of a universalisation work plan for each State involved, with the involvement of national stakeholders. If possible and appropriate, those activities could consist of a joint activity between States with ongoing close cooperation and similar national circumstances. Focus areas for the activities will be the provision of specific informational materials on the benefits of joining the BTWC, awareness-raising among national stakeholders, including parliamentarians and other political decision makers, and the promotion of the establishment of national coordination on BTWC-related issues.

In addition, two regional workshops, one for Africa and one for the Pacific region, will be organised to capitalise on the geographical proximity of several States not party to the BTWC and to encourage regional dialogue in order to sustain universalisation efforts. A sponsorship element will also be included in order to bring key officials from States not yet party to the BTWC to its meetings in Geneva.