Excellencies,
Distinguished participants,
I am privileged to address you on the occasion of the certification of designated laboratories following the 55th Official OPCW Proficiency Test.
Since 1996, the proficiency tests have been instrumental in ensuring that our designated laboratories meet the high standards of the Chemical Weapons Convention.
The laboratories network is crucial for the Secretariat to fulfil its mandates.
I appreciate your assistance in the off-site analysis of samples.
The high quality of the analytical results reflects your professionalism and commitment.
I thank you for your ongoing cooperation with the Secretariat and prompt support—often on short notice— whenever needed.
The Secretariat is already enhancing this cooperation through the Centre for Chemistry and Technology (CCT), which was inaugurated last year.
The CCT, as the laboratory network hub, will further improve our ability to work with our laboratory partners to implement the Convention and uphold the verification regime.
In addition to being an accreditation requirement, proficiency testing is also a valuable learning experience for those seeking to join the network.
Although designation is specific to the Convention, the skills acquired in the process can be broadly beneficial.
Today, the designated laboratories network consists of 32 laboratories from 23 States Parties, including 28 designated for environmental sample analysis, and 19 designated for biomedical sample analysis.
Currently, 18 laboratories have concluded Technical Arrangements with the Secretariat for the analysis of authentic samples.
I invite all designated laboratories without such arrangements to conclude one as soon as possible to fully utilise your achievements in the testing process.
With this in mind, I congratulate you all on your successful participation in the 55th Proficiency Test.
I would also like to sincerely thank the assisting laboratories for their contribution to the test:
- Spiez Laboratory, Switzerland for preparing the samples, and
- DSO National Laboratories, Singapore, for the evaluation of the participants’ reports.
I also appreciate the OPCW Laboratory staff for organising the proficiency tests, and the meetings to discuss the preliminary results of the 55th Proficiency Test, the 17th CWC Chemical Analysis Competency Testing and the 9th Biomedical Proficiency Test.
Distinguished participants,
As I mentioned earlier, the network is a crucial asset for the OPCW and is vital to the verification regime.
Increasing the number of designated laboratories in all regions strengthens the network, and expanding it is a priority for the Secretariat.
To support this goal, we run a number of initiatives, including the Laboratory Twinning and Assistance Programme.
Launched in 2020, this programme consolidates the activities of the Secretariat for helping laboratories working toward designation.
It partners designated laboratories with other laboratories to assist them in building capabilities to obtain designated status.
In addition, it provides a range of further support for this process.
Today, we are witnessing concrete results of our long-term, tailor-made support, including the twinning project.
I congratulate the National Institute of Criminalistics and Criminology of the Gendarmerie Nationale in Algeria, for achieving designation.
This is the first time since 2006 that Africa has had a designated laboratory, and the first time ever that the network is represented in all regional groups.
This accomplishment of National Institute of Criminalistics and Criminology would have been impossible without their twinning partner.
I am grateful to the Bundeswehr Research Institute for Protective Technologies and CBRN Protection in Germany for their assistance.
My gratitude also goes to the European Union for its generous financial support of the Twinning and Assistance Programme; specifically the Algerian-German Partnership.
Partnerships like this are invaluable for strengthening the laboratory network and ultimately preventing the re-emergence of chemical weapons.
I encourage you all, as designated laboratories, to consider participating in the Twinning and Assistance Programme to expand our network and enhance the capacity for implementing the Convention.
I also wish to highlight the new designation of the Chemical Laboratory of the CBRN Area Control Centre in Poland.
Congratulations on this achievement, and welcome to our OPCW family of designated laboratories.
I again congratulate Algeria and Germany on their success, and I would like to mention the reception that they have organised in the delegates lounge following our meeting. I hope to see you there.
This will be an excellent opportunity to discuss the Laboratory Twinning and Assistance Programme and Algeria and Germany’s partnership.
Once again, congratulations to all of you on your successful participation.
Thank you for your kind attention.