The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and Qatar's National Committee for Prohibition of Weapons (NCPW) jointly hosted a seminar on the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) and Chemical Safety and Security Management for Asian Member States from 19 to 21 March 2023 in Doha, Qatar.
In his opening remarks, Brigadier General Abdulaziz Salmeen Aljabri, Chairman of the NCPW, highlighted the importance of chemical safety and security management, a key element related to the implementation of the CWC's Article XI.
"Ensuring chemical safety and security management requires interaction across different sectors, including academia and industry," he added.
The Head of OPCW's International Cooperation Branch expressed gratitude to Qatar for its continuous support to the Organisation and gave updates on the OPCW Centre for Chemistry and Technology (ChemTech Centre) which will significantly enhance the Organisation's capabilities to rid the world of chemical weapons and provide further capacity building opportunities for Member States.
The seminar, fully funded by Qatar, contributes to Asian Member States' capacity in various aspects of chemical safety and security management, including new technologies as well as tackling emerging threats to the chemical industry, such as cybersecurity and drone attacks.
Since 2011, the Doha Workshop has been one of the long-standing courses on chemical safety and security management funded by Qatar to support Asian Member States' chemical emergency preparedness.
The seminar was attended by 26 international participants (20 of which received financial support to attend the event) from 18 OPCW Member States (Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Laos, Lebanon, Malaysia, Micronesia, Myanmar, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Viet Nam) as well as a number of local participants from Qatar.
Background
As the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention, the OPCW, with its 193 Member States, oversees the global endeavour to permanently eliminate chemical weapons. Since the Convention's entry into force in 1997, it is the most successful disarmament treaty eliminating an entire class of weapons of mass destruction.
Over 99% of all declared chemical weapon stockpiles have been destroyed under OPCW verification. For its extensive efforts in eliminating chemical weapons, the OPCW received the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize.
