Zambia Hosts Visit by Security Council 1540 Committee, 14 to 17 April

NEW YORK, 17 April (Office for Disarmament Affairs) — A delegation supporting the work of the Security Council’s 1540 Committee has concluded a four-day visit to Zambia, conducted upon invitation by the Government.

The delegation consisted of two experts supporting the Committee’s work, as well as officers from the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa (UNREC).

The main objective of the visit was the provision of assistance to Zambia in the drafting process of its first 1540 Committee national report, while also discussing future steps to be undertaken by Zambia in accordance with the resolution.

The delegation held a number of working sessions with various national stakeholders involved in the implementation of resolution 1540 (2004), including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Justice, Office of the President, Zambia Revenue Authority, Zambia Environmental Management Agency, Zambia Bureau of Standards, Financial Intelligence Centre, Radiation Protection Authority, University of Zambia and the National Institute for Science and Industrial Research.

The delegation paid a visit to the Chirundu border, in order to observe the procedures in place and to have an exchange of views with officials from the Zambia Revenue Authority’s customs operations.

Resolution 1540 (2004) was adopted unanimously by the Security Council, under the United Nations Charter’s Chapter VII, on 28 April 2004.  It obliges all States to refrain from providing any form of support to non-State actors attempting to develop, acquire, manufacture, possess, transport, transfer or use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons and their means of delivery.  The resolution requires all States to establish domestic controls to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery, including by establishing appropriate controls over related materials.

The 1540 Committee, a subsidiary body of the Council, reports to it on implementation of the resolution.  On 20 April 2011, the Security Council adopted resolution 1977 (2011), by which it extended the Committee’s mandate until 2021.

For additional information about the 1540 Committee, please visit http://www.un.org/sc/1540/.