Government of Malawi hosts national seminar on CTBT

The Government of the Republic of Malawi, in co-operation with the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), hosted a national seminar on the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) on 23 February 2006 in Lilongwe. Mr. Ambrose Mzoma, the Director of Administration and Finance in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, opened the seminar. In his opening remarks, Mr. Mzoma expressed his hope that the seminar would enhance the understanding of the CTBT by the Malawi people and provide an impetus for the Malawi Government to promote ratification and become a State Party to the CTBT. He stressed the importance of global security and development and called on countries possessing nuclear technology to forgo them for the sake of global peace and security. In closing, Mr. Mzoma acknowledged the importance of the CTBT for global security and its contribution to the ultimate goal of eliminating nuclear weapons on the globe. The Director of the Legal and External Relations Division of the CTBTO Preparatory Commission, Mr. Ziping Gu, also addressed the seminar and, on behalf of Mr. Tibor Tóth, Executive Secretary of the CTBTO Preparatory Commission, thanked the Malawi Government for its organization. Mr. Gu further stressed the important contribution that Malawi could make to the universality of the Treaty by ratifying it. Thirty participants representing a number of government ministries and Departments as well as academic and scientific institutions participated in the seminar. PTS staff gave presentations on political, legal and technical aspects of the CTBT and the work of the Commission. Representatives of the Malawi Government shared their views on the Pelindaba Treaty. Discussions focused on the political significance of the CTBT and potential benefits for Malawi arising from the CTBT verification regime, including technical support for the operation of the National Data Centre, training opportunities and potential civil and scientific applications of CTBT verification technologies. Concluding the seminar, participants agreed that they should sensitize their relevant Ministries on the importance of the CTBT for Malawi. They also called on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to promote ratification of the Treaty by preparing a respective proposal to the Cabinet.