ACCRA, Ghana, December 9, 2009/African Press Organization (APO)/ — On 3 – 4 December 2009, a workshop was held in Accra, Ghana, to raise awareness about the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) among West African states and to encourage their engagement.

The meeting was hosted by a South Africa-based research organisation, the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), and the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa (UNREC), with financial support from the UK and Norwegian governments.

Participants from a range of West African governments and civil society organisations, with representatives from ISS, UNREC and the UK and South African governments, discussed the relevance of the NPT to African countries.

The workshop focused on how the treaty promotes the peaceful uses of nuclear energy which a growing number of African countries are considering to meet their future energy needs.

The meeting also disc ussed the implications of the recent entry into force of the African Nuclear Weapon Free Zone Treaty (the Pelindaba Treaty) and the possible creation of a network of African civil society organisations to promote a world without Weapons of Mass Destruction.


SOURCE :United Kingdom – Ministry of Foreign Affairs