United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament to Hold Capacity-Building Workshop on Implementing Small Arms, Light Weapons Action Programme in South-East Asia

NEW YORK, 5 June 2017 (Office for Disarmament Affairs) — The United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific and the Government of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic are jointly organizing a training workshop on building capacity for the implementation of the Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in South-East Asia.  The workshop will take place in Vientiane, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, from 6 to 7 June.

Government officials working in the area of conventional arms control from the member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Timor-Leste, as well as representatives from the United Nations and the ASEAN Association of Chiefs of Police, will meet to exchange views and share experiences on national implementation of the  Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects, including the preparation of national reports.

The training aims to enhance the capacity of participating States to effectively utilize the Programme of Action reporting mechanism to demonstrate States’ efforts to prevent the diversion of small arms and light weapons into illicit markets.  The workshop will also serve as preparation for the third Review Conference of the Programme of Action, to take place in June 2018, and foster regional dialogue among the ASEAN States and Timor-Leste.  Furthermore, the workshop will address practical aspects of Programme of Action implementation and introduce different tools and actors offering support in that regard.  To that end, the training will include exercises on using the Programme of Action’s reporting mechanism and the International Tracing Instrument, while elaborating national action plans on control over small arms and light weapons.  Government officials will be provided with practical advice and skills on collecting national data and preparing and submitting national reports online.

Participants will also develop a greater understanding of how reporting on the Programme of Action can contribute to and support national efforts to assess progress towards realizing Sustainable Development Goal target 16.4, on significantly reducing illicit arms flows.

The workshop is made possible through financial support from the United Nations Trust Facility Supporting Cooperation on Arms Regulation.

For further information, please contact Yuriy Kryvonos, Director of the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific, at email:  info@unrcpd.org.