Ladies and gentlemen,
Dear Friends,
I am honoured to welcome you to the ninth Review and Evaluation Workshop on the Components of the Agreed Framework for Implementing Article XI.
It is a pleasure to see so many distinguished representatives and so many well-known faces from across the OPCW Member States attending this important workshop.
Distinguished Delegates,
The Convention is a comprehensive and robust disarmament treaty.
Thanks to the continued commitment and tireless efforts by all States Parties over the past decades, in July last year, the Organisation reached the historic milestone of verifying the complete destruction of all declared chemical weapons stockpiles.
To ensure the permanence of this accomplishment, we must remain devoted to preventing the re-emergence of such weapons.
Against this backdrop, promoting the peaceful uses of chemistry, which is enshrined in the Convention, particularly in Article XI, now takes on even greater importance.
Fulfilling the obligations under this Article remains vital to strengthening national implementation and making sure that the Convention is uniformly applied across all regions.
This is crucial for achieving a world free of chemical weapons, the key objective of the Convention.
Distinguished Delegates,
Together, we have achieved remarkable progress in 2024 in fulfilling the goals of Article XI.
With the support through the OPCW capacity building programmes over the past 10 years, the National Institute of Criminalistics and Criminology of Algeria joined the OPCW designated laboratories network this April, making it the first such laboratory in the African region since 2006.
In 2024, we continued strengthening our efforts in building laboratory capacity.
Integrated assistance projects aimed at laboratories in the African and Latin American and Caribbean regions are making headway, thanks to generous voluntary contributions from Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom.
To further sustain the capacity building of chemical safety and security at the national level, the Guidelines for the Safe and Secure Transport of Hazardous Chemicals by Road were successfully launched last month.
These achievements, however, represent only a small part of our activities.
Distinguished Delegates,
The inauguration of the Centre for Chemistry and Technology last year has further enhanced the capacity-building activities under Article XI.
The state-of-the-art training facilities and expanded pool of equipment at the Centre has allowed the Secretariat to scale up its capacity-building programmes by accommodating more participants and exploring new topics.
With more programmes being held at the ChemTech Centre, the Secretariat is also able to better leverage its in-house expertise with increased cost efficiencies of the programmes.
By the end of this year, 10 programmes and activities under Article XI will have been implemented at the ChemTech Centre. These include proficiency test training and customs laboratory initiatives, both online and in person.
As we continue to develop the potential of the Centre, new initiatives such as the Joint Research Fellowship Programme, and the African Fellowship in the Biotoxin Analysis Programme are expected to be hosted at the ChemTech Centre.
Distinguished Delegates,
The Secretariat is undertaking its capacity-building support to States Parties while staying abreast of the latest technological developments, including artificial intelligence.
Among the activities we have undertaken, I want to highlight the successful global conference that took place last month in Rabat, Morocco.
In October, the OPCW and the Kingdom of Morocco co-organised the first Global Conference on the Role of Artificial Intelligence in Advancing the Implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention.
Among other things, this Conference underscored the transformative potential of AI in promoting the peaceful applications of chemistry while enhancing chemical safety and security.
The Conference further underlined the importance of ensuring that the benefits of AI are accessible to all regions and noted the potential of AI to further strengthen the capabilities of developing States Parties in implementing the Chemical Weapons Convention.
The outcomes of this Conference will assist the Member States in further understanding the impact of AI in the framework of the CWC and help us shape our strategy and way forward to leverage its benefit, while mitigating the risks.
Distinguished Delegates,
This annual workshop is aimed at reinforcing and improving the implementation of Article XI.
I strongly encourage you to exchange ideas, insights, and best practices, which will enhance the overall learning experience for everyone.
I appreciate your presence, your commitment, and your steadfast dedication to our common vision.
Finally, I wish to thank Mr Li Zhao, the Acting Director of the International Cooperation and Assistance Division, and his team for organising again this important event. They are available to provide any support you may need.
I wish you a fruitful workshop and I thank you for your kind attention.