Statement of Ambassador Mohammad Ali Foum from the African Union

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Mr Chairperson, Honourable Ministers, I would like, at the outset, to apologize for the absence of Ambassador Said Djinnit, Commissioner for Peace and Security in the Commission of the African Union, who, for unavoidable reasons, could not attend this important meeting. I would also like to thank the Government of the Republic of Kenya for organizing this meeting and to pay tribute to its continued effort to deal with the issue of small arms and light weapons, as well as for the invitation it has extended to the African Union to attend this Ministerial meeting.

Distinguished Ministers and guests, as you are aware, this region is one of the most highly affected by the illicit proliferation of small arms and light weapons. Witness the anarchy in Somalia, where the proliferation of small arms is fuelling the more than decade-long conflict tearing apart that country. Indeed, small arms have become Africa's weapons of mass destruction!

As you all know, the African Union has, in recent years, been pre-occupied with the issue of illicit trade and proliferation in small arms and light weapons. As part of the efforts to address this problem, the AU organized, in November/December 2000, in Bamako, Mali, a Ministerial Conference on the Illicit Proliferation, Circulation and Trafficking of Small Arms and Light Weapons, which resulted in the adoption of the Bamako Declaration. In their decision on the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) of the Conference on Security, Stability, Development and Cooperation in Africa (CSSCDA), African leaders agreed to take appropriate measures for the effective implementation of the Bamako Declaration. They further agreed to establish national coordination agencies or frameworks and institutional infrastructure for policy guidance, research and monitoring, and to adopt necessary legislative and other measures to establish, as criminal offences, the illicit manufacture, possession and trade in small arms and light weapons.

This Ministerial Conference to review the status of implementation of the Nairobi Declaration is in line with the efforts of the AU. It is also a shining example of what a coordinated collective effort can achieve to curb one of Africa's most serious and deadly security threats.

The Protocol Relating to the Establishment of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union makes a direct reference to the impact of the illicit proliferation of small arms and light weapons as a threat to peace and security in Africa, and to the living standards of African peoples. The significance that the African Union Commission attaches to this problem is evidenced by the fact that the Peace and Security Department of the Commission will comprise a Unit that will deal with Strategic Security Issues, of which the issue of the illicit proliferation of small arms and light weapons is one. The Department is also in the process of elaborating a four-year programme of action, which will cover the implementation of the Bamako Declaration and the UN Programme of Action.

The efforts undertaken by the countries of this region to grapple with the problem of small arms and light weapons, at both the regional and national levels is laudable. I wish, on behalf of the African Union, to pay tribute to the Government of Tanzania, which was the first to elaborate a Plan of Action at the national level on the basis of the Nairobi Declaration. Its experience will prove invaluable for other countries in the region and, indeed, to all African countries.

It is imperative, however, to push forward for an integrated approach to the problem and to establish mechanisms for monitoring the implementation of agreements, declarations and resolutions on the issue. The problem of the illicit proliferation of small arms and light weapons is global and, therefore, efforts at national, sub-regional and continental levels should complement and reinforce each other and be synchronized, so that effective results can be obtained.

Africa should also adopt a common position with regard to the supply side of the problem of the illicit proliferation of small arms and light weapons. African countries should make a concerted effort to pressurize arms suppliers to put in place adequate laws, regulations and administrative procedures to ensure effective control over the export and transit of small arms and light weapons. Even the best laid plans for the control of illicit proliferation of small arms and light weapons may not prove effective unless they are supported by a similarly stricter regime in the arms exporting countries. We are gratified to note that the Ministerial Declaration that has been placed for your consideration addresses these important aspects.

Finally, I wish to call upon the countries represented at this august meeting to exert all the efforts necessary to implement the Nairobi Declaration in light of the Bamako Declaration and the UN Plan of Action.

Let me at this point briefly refer to the draft Declaration. Paragraph 2(b) addresses the Commission of the African Union. The thrust of that paragraph as it stands subliminally suggests differences between this sub-regional organization and the AU. The comments I have just made reflect the contrary. I have suggested to the Secretariat how best to rework that paragraph to indicate specific options, rather than general prepositions for recognition.

The African Union Commission, on its part, will do its utmost to assist Member States and Sub-Regional Organizations to effectively implement their plans within the limits of its capacity.

I thank you.