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The electronic version of this document has been prepared at the Fourth
World Conference on Women by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
in collaboration with the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women
Secretariat.
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AS WRITTEN


STATEMENT BY IAEA AT THE BEIJING SUMMIT


Madam Chairperson,

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) which I am representing
here, is the agency within the UN system responsible for international
activities concerned with the peaceful uses of atomic energy. The aims
of the Agency, to quote its Statute, are "to accelerate and enlarge the
contribution of atomic energy to peace, health and prosperity throughout
the world" while ensuring that assistance provided under its auspices is
not used to further any military purpose. I would like to give a brief
account of the IAEA's activities and programmes that are relevant to the
critical areas of concern that have been identified as obstacles to the
advancement of women in the world. Indeed, these activities and
programmes reflect our firm commitment to contribute to the full
participation and the advancement of women both in our Agency and in the
programmes we conduct.

As this conference sets out to focus world efforts on women's issues and
elaborates an agenda for action, it does so against a vision of a world
which can contain and eventually eliminate the threat of nuclear weapons
and of a world where science and technology can contribute to
sustainable development.

Peace, development and equality, are important to the platform that
would emerge from this conference - since women are more vulnerable to
and have seen the utmost suffering throughout history from the scourge
of war and poverty. Allow me then to indicate how the IAEA contributes
to securing peace and promoting sustainable development.

An event of profound significance earlier this year was the decision by
178 nations to make permanent the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of
Nuclear Weapons (NPT), the treaty that symbolizes, in letter and spirit
the international community's commitment to a nuclear-weapon-free-world
and for disarmament. The IAEA has a specific function within the UN
system in verifying through its safeguards system the renunciation of
the nuclear weapons' option by the vast majority of the nations of the
world. It is through the fulfillment of this role in the implementation
of the NPT that the IAEA seeks to make a lasting contribution to
preventive diplomacy through transparency and confidence- building. It
seems appropriate to describe this part of the IAEA's activity as
fundamental to women's concerns for a secure world order which would
reduce the risk of armed and other conflicts.

When we talk about Sustainable Development our paramount concerns today
are clean drinking water, secure food supplies, nutrition, health and
protection from environmental depredation.

In the past hundred years since the discovery of radioactivity the
applications of nuclear science and techniques have grown to cover
diverse fields of development. Applications of nuclear science and
technology are well-known for producing electric power through nuclear
power plants. Perhaps it is less well-known that radioactivity and
radioactive isotopes can be put to numerous uses in the field of food
preservation and agricultural development. It has been our experience
through the Agency's programmes in developing countries that these
applications can help change for the better the conditions for people in
these basic areas. It is possible to see the positive implications of
such a change for women's concerns too.

Genetic changes can be induced in crops through irradiation and this
improves the yield of crops, makes them stronger against pests and
weather and suitable for longer storage. The net impact of IAEA's work
in this field in selected areas of Asia and Africa has been in producing
improved rice, sorghum, maize, barley as well as banana and common
beans. This in turn contributes to enhancing food security. Women who
tend farm animals in agricultural societies are familiar with the havoc
caused by insects to crops and the menace of pests to animals. IAEA has
contributed to the use of radioactive isotopes in combating and
eradicating some of these pests from parts of Africa and North and
Central America.

In the sphere of human health, the Agency has worked to upgrade nuclear
medicine and radiotherapy capabilities. Women's diseases form part of an
important aspect of this work. The early detection of the incidence of
cancer in women, therapeutic strategies to treat breast cancer, cancer
of the cervix, head and neck tumors are areas where the IAEA's programme
in nuclear medicine, applied radiation biology and radiotherapy have
served to up-grade and strengthen indigenous skills and capabilities in
developing countries. Nutrition which is closely linked to health in the
poor, is an important field where the IAEA has undertaken projects.
These projects deal with the application of nuclear techniques to solve
problems in developing countries pertaining to protein- energy
malnutrition and anaemia caused by iron deficiency; conditions all too
prevalent in women.

To illustrate the point: Anaemia is reported to be common in Mauritius
with high prevalence among children under S and women workers. The
Agency is assisting, on Government request, in introducing radioisotope
techniques, and establishing the capability for their application, for
monitoring and assessment of the nutritional status of women.

The availability of drinking water in developing countries was the
subject of a resolution in the IAEA General Conference last year.
Studies are under way toward (i) economic use of nuclear power for
desalination of sea water in the Middle East, (ii) using techniques in
isotope hydrology to assist in the water resources assessment in
countries in Latin America where techniques have been valuable in the
identification of new water resources in coastal areas of Peru.

Coal fired power plants are known to cause air pollution which in turn
leads to respiratory problems in big cities where these plants are
located. A pilot project in Poland has been successful in using
radiation technology to remove toxic gases from coal fired power plants.
Feasibility studies for a large industrial project have commenced.
Success in this venture would go a long way towards controlling urban
pollution due to thermal plants and, to that extent, alleviating
diseases like childhood asthma.

There is going to be an increased demand for electricity as developing
countries strive to upgrade their economies and quality of life. Growing
awareness of health and environmental impacts of power plants is likely
to make the nuclear option more attractive in a broader range of
countries. The facts about nuclear power speak for themselves: There are
432 nuclear power plants in operation, which contribute around 17% of
worldwide electricity generation. In the period 1990-1994 nuclear power
has, by supplanting fossil sources, helped in the avoidance of
approximately 8.2% of the quantity of carbon dioxide getting into the
atmosphere

The Nairobi Forward Looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women to
the year 2000 called for, among other things, the enhanced involvement
of women in all levels of decision-making. By providing assistance to
its developing Member States, primarily through institution-building,
technical consultancy and human resource development; as well as through
its affirmative action policy on the full participation and training of
women in its technical cooperation programme the IAEA seeks to help
expand the involvement of women scientists and technologists. The
knowledge and skills being invested in women should contribute to
shaping more enlightened energy policies and while formulating its
programmes, the Agency takes into account the importance of the
participation of women in its activities. Alongside its sister
organizations, including FAO, WHO and UNDP, the IAEA is an implementing
agency of the draft UN System-Wide-Medium- Term- Plan for the
Integration of Women in Development (SWMTP) for 1996-2001 and has itself
established a "model project" on women's cancers.

Within the regional cooperative agreements, a strategy has been
formulated for promotion of the involvement of women in the Asia and the
Pacific region in fields of activities that would have particular impact
on women. Likewise, the role of women as partners in development was
emphasized in the Regional Cooperative Agreement for Africa both in the
conceptualization and the implementation of regional cooperation
activities. Under the IAEA’s Technical Cooperation Programmes women are
being given the opportunity to influence the development agenda through
National and Regional activities.

Finally, the IAEA has been making particular efforts to increase
participation of women in the Secretariat. This issue has been receiving
close attention by the policy making organs of the Agency on the one
hand and the system-wide coordinating mechanisms on the other. In recent
years, IAEA Member States have called upon the Director General to
continue efforts to rectify the existing imbalance in women's
representation in the professional and higher categories, particularly
at the senior and policy making categories. The General Conference of
the Agency has also called for Member States' support, in conjunction
with the Secretariat's efforts, in ensuring that the vacancy notices are
brought to the attention of suitably qualified women, especially in
scientific careers and from developing countries, that such women be
strongly encouraged to apply and that any obstacles that might impede
their accepting employment in the Secretariat - if offered - are
eliminated.

The IAEA has an active programme to increase the representation of women
and there is a regular review by top management on its implementation.
It has drafted an action plan dealing with recruitment, training, career
development and conflict resolution systems where these have an impact
on the status of women. There has been some progress in the past years
in the improvement of women's representation in that the percentage
share of women staff in the Professional and higher categories went up
from 12.6% in 1989 to 17.2% in December 1994, the absolute increase in
their number being 11. The Agency has also focused efforts on increasing
the number of women performing expert missions for it and the number of
fellowships awarded to women.

As the Member States achieve success in taking action to mainstream
women at home and in the UN system, there is bound to be a direct impact
on the organizations of the UN system since the pool from which we
recruit staff and experts will include more women. The IAEA is dedicated
to a fruitful conclusion of this conference. It will be our common
endeavour to ensure that the platform for action emerging from here
makes the advancement of women a tangible process with clearly
identified goals.

Thank you.