The United Nations Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC) held a Practical Seminar: Fulfilling Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) reporting obligations in the CARICOM region from 6-7 July in Bridgetown, Barbados.
The purpose of this Seminar was to provide practical insights into the Arms Trade Treaty’s reporting requirements in order to increment the submission rate and quality of ATT and other relevant reports on an annual basis by CARICOM States. Fifteen representatives from ten CARICOM states participated in the activity (Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Suriname.)
The Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Attorney General in Barbados, Deborah Payne, participated in the opening ceremony of the Seminar, where she stated: “As representatives from a small island developing state, we can relate to the reporting burden which treaties demand. This concern has been raised by several member states….The adoption of comprehensive reporting templates and the making of public reporting mandatory have been key objectives of some member states. Barbados shares that view, but also asserts that consideration must be given to those states for whom reporting is a challenge”
The seminar was delivered by the UNLIREC Non-Proliferation and Arms Control Programme team and participants benefitted from technical experts from the governments of Sweden and Costa Rica, and the CARICOM Implementing Agency for Crime and Security. Presentations and practical exercises were designed to support them in preparing the initial and annual reports and understanding how to set up an ATT national control system.
This seminar forms part of UNLIREC’s Arms Trade Treaty Assistance Package and was entirely funded by the Government of Sweden. Through its assistance to Latin American and Caribbean States, UNLIREC supports improvements in peace, security, and in implementing the Arms Trade Treaty.