UNLIREC accompanied a delegation from the South African Department of Trade and Industry to provide technical assistance to the Government of Grenada on the enactment of comprehensive legislation on non-proliferation, as well as on the drafting and effective implementation of control lists (21-24 July 2014). Stakeholders from several institutions and agencies attended presentations and discussions on the South African model on control lists and their implementation, including the Ministry of Agriculture, St. George’s University, the Grenada Solid Waste Management Authority, the Ministry of Trade, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs & International Business, the Ministry of Legal Affairs, the Grenada Ports Authority, the Royal Grenada Police Force – Fire Department / Passport and Immigration Office-, Customs and Excise and the Bureau of Standards.
During focalized discussions with officials from the Ministry of Legal Affairs, issues relating to possible amendments to existing legislation were addressed, along with suggestions for strengthening the current legal framework in the areas of nuclear and biological weapons and materials.
In the margins of the assistance mission, UNLIREC met with the Permanent Secretaries and the Heads of the Non Ministerial Departments during their weekly meetings chaired by the Cabinet Chair, and presented the characteristics of the assistance package that it has been delivering in the country over the past months. Commending the dedication, effort and commitment displayed thus far by all of the officials with which the Centre has been working, UNLIREC exhorted the permanent secretaries and heads of non-ministerial departments to continue supporting their officials in this training and to promote the strengthening of Resolution 1540 (2004) in Grenada.
UNLIREC also conducted meetings with officials from the MFA to discuss the consolidation of an interinstitutional working group, the drafting of a voluntary national action plan and next steps for the upcoming activities in the technical assistance component of the package.
UNLIREC forms part of the Regional Disarmament Branch (RDB), one of five branches of the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA). UNLIREC is the only UN regional entity specialized in disarmament and non-proliferation in the Latin American and Caribbean region with the task of translating the decisions, instruments and commitments of Member States in the field of disarmament and non-proliferation into action, at national, sub-regional and regional levels.
For more information on UNLIREC visit (www.unlirec.org.) Please direct all questions or inquiries to: Ms Amanda Cowl, Political Affairs Officer, at (cowl@unlirec.org).