Experts and participants of the seminar posing for a group photo.
The National Committee for the Prohibition of Weapons (NCPW) has organised a seminar on 'Chemical Safety and Security Management' for the members of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in the Asia Region.
The three-day event is being held in Doha in collaboration with OPCW.
As many as 23 representatives from 11 countries signatory to the Chemical Weapons Convention from Arab, Asian and European countries are participating in the seminar, in addition to experts from OPCW and specialists from the relevant state institutions.
At the outset of the seminar, Brigadier (Air) Hassan Saleh Al Nesf, Chairman of the NCPW, said that: “Qatar has made great strides towards the implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention in cooperation with the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, and in line with the approach it has adopted in order to promoting international peace and security.”
The seminar comes as confirmation and promotion of chemical industries, as one of the important pillars of the global technological development, and the increase that is required in the use of chemicals, including the chemicals listed in the three schedules annexed to the Convention, the Chairman added.
“We hope that the Seminar will contribute to deepen knowledge on the importance of chemical safety and security to become part of the human system and behaviour in order to reduce deviation of the use of chemicals and to succeed in promoting safe handling of chemicals at the national level,” he stated.
On behalf of the Director General of OPCW, Dr. Rohan Perera, Senior Programme officers International Operation Branch, said that: “This event was indeed jointly conceived by the Government of Qatar and the OPCW. Your generous support, in hosting this seminar on this important subject, represents yet another evidence of the strong cooperation of the OPCW and the Government of Qatar in promoting the goals of disarmament, non-proliferation, promotion of peaceful uses of chemistry and full implementation especially of Article XI of the convention as well as contributing towards the success of the Chemical Weapons Convention."
He further added: "The support and cooperation that the OPCW has received from Qatar has been crucial to the progress in many of its key activities. It has strongly supported implementation of the Convention and through voluntary contribution continues to provide to the OPCW in various areas of implementation of the Convention, including capacity-building that goes much more beyond statistics."