Programme of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons - Sixth Biennial Meeting of States (2016)

Overview

Biennial Meetings of States have the mandate to consider the national, regional and global implementation of the Programme of Action (PoA) to prevent, combat and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons in all its aspects and its International Tracing Instrument (ITI).

The Sixth Biennial Meeting of States on the Programme of Action was held from 6 to 10 June 2016 in New York.

Secretariat Contact: conventionalarms-unoda@un.org

Background

In 2001, countries adopted the Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects (PoA). In it, governments agreed to improve national small arms regulations, to strengthen stockpile management, to ensure that weapons are properly and reliably marked, to improve cooperation in weapons tracing, and to engage in regional and international cooperation and assistance.

Programme of Action

Marking, record-keeping, and tracing

In 2005, the General Assembly adopted the International Tracing Instrument (ITI), which specifically provides a framework for cooperation in weapons tracing – thus fulfilling one of the commitments governments made in the PoA.

International Tracing Instrument [A] [C] [E] [F] [R] [S]

Improving weapons tracing is also part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Meetings and national reports on PoA and ITI are always combined.

Periodic review of implementation

A conference to review the progress made in the implementation of the PoA is convened every six years. Between review conferences, Biennial Meetings of States (BMS) are held. Additionally, States have held Meetings of Governmental Experts (MGE) to benefit from the knowledge of technical specialists on matters pertaining to small arms and light weapons control.

Timeline PoA process and meetings

Officers

Ambassador Courtenay Rattray

Ambassador Courtenay Rattray is the Permanent Representative of Jamaica to the United Nations, a post to which he was appointed on 1st June 2013. Prior to this appointment, he served as Jamaica’s Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China, from December 2008 until May 2013.

He was appointed as Chair of the Intergovernmental Negotiations on UN Security Council Reform in November 2014. He also served as the Chair of the 69th Session of the UN Committee on Disarmament and International Security (First Committee) and Chair of the Permanent Memorial Committee for the UN’s project to erect a memorial in honour of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. He was the Co-Facilitator of the UN consultation process on the modalities and outcome document for the comprehensive review and assessment of progress achieved in the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases, from May-July 2014.

During his public service career, Ambassador Rattray served as Director for Bilateral Relations in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, as well Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of Jamaica in Washington DC. Prior to this, he was Special Advisor to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade and previously the Special Advisor to the Minister of Industry and Investment.

Before joining the public service, Ambassador Rattray was the Executive Director of the Jamaica Marketing Company Ltd., a trading company based in the UK owned by the Government of Jamaica. He has also served as Jamaica’s Trade Commissioner in London.

Ambassador Rattray holds a BA in International Studies from West Virginia Wesleyan College, a MSc. in International Business from South Bank University in London, and a MA (Global Master of Arts Program) from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, Boston, where he gave the Commencement Address to the GMAP Graduating Class of 2015.

He is married to Tanya and has four children.

Contact: jamaica@un.int

Segments

Letters from the Chairperson-designate:

Member States, International and Regional Organizations, and UN entities at the United Nations Headquarters on the occasion of the Sixth Biennial Meeting of States to Consider the Implementation of the Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All its Aspects

New York, 6-10 June 2016

June2016

Presentation on the progress of the iTrace-projectEuropean Union

1:15 - 2:30 pmCR 4

Weapons and Gender: Preventing gender-based violence and promoting equality through implementation of the ATT and UNPoAWomen's International League for Peace and Freedom

1:15-2:30 pmCR D

Activities in Africa in Support of the Implementation of the Programme of ActionUNREC in cooperation with ECOWAS and UNDP Nigeria Country Office

1:15-2:30 pmCR C

Peace Operations in Action: Developing Capacity in Weapons and Ammunition Management, Case Study from Côte d'IvoireMission of Lithuania in cooperation with UNMAS

1:15-2:30 pmCR 7

Trade, Transparency and Illicit TraffickingMission of Switzerland in cooperation with Small Arms Survey

1:15-2:30 pmCR 12

June2016

Regional Approach to SALW Control: Success Stories from South East EuropeUNDP SEESAC

1:15-2:30 pmCR C

Relationship between SALW - Treaties/Programme of Action and SDG 16.4Group of Interested States in Practical Disarmament Measures in cooperation with UNODA, IANSA, SAS and Control Arms

1:15-2:30 pmGerman House (871 UN Plaza, NY)

End-use control and post-delivery verification. Are arms exporting countries doing all they can to stop diversion?GRIP

1:15-2:45 pmCR D

June2016

Advances in the implementation of the UNPoA in Central America and the CaribbeanMission of Guatemala in cooperation with IEPADES and REDCEPAZ

8:30-9:45 amCR C

Fight Against the Illicit Trafficking in SALW: What Role for Private Actors and Civil SocietyMission of France

9:00-10:00 amCR 6

Implementing PoA/ITI in the Arab WorldMission of Germany in cooperation with League of Arab States and Permanent Peace Movement

1:15-2:30 pmCR C

Towards the Establishment of a National Framework for Weapons and Ammunition Management in the Federal Republic of SomaliaMission of Finland in cooperation with UNIDIR

1:15-2:30 pmCR 4

The role of parliamentarians and health professionals in connecting the dots between the PoA and SDG16: Reducing armed violence for sustainable developmentInternational Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, Parliamentary Forum on Small Arms and Light Weapons Sponsored by the Mission of Sweden

1:15-2:30 pm Permanent Mission of Sweden (One Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, 885 Second Ave, 46th Fl.)

Achieving Synergies for Effective Implementation of the International Instruments for Small Arms ControlIANSA

1:15-2:30 pmCR D

Combatting illicit trafficking and proliferation of SALW in Southern EuropeUNDP SEESAC

3:00-4:00 pmCR C

Regional Centre on Small Arms and Light Weapons Tracing System Software for Management and Control of SALWMission of Rwanda in cooperation with RECSA

4:00-6:00 pmCR C

June2016

Actionable tools to support the implementation of small arms conrol measuresMission of Germany in cooperation with UNIDIR, Bonn International Center for Conversion and Conflict Armament Research

1:15-2:30 pmCR C

Streamlining SALW Reporting ToolsOSCE and UNODA

1:15-2:00 pmCR 4

Small Arms Control and the Sustainable Development Goals: Mutually reinforcing mechanisms to reduce gun violenceIANSA

1:15-2:45 pmCR D

June2016

SALW Proliferation and Sustainable Development: Assessing the Contribution of SALW Proliferation on Fragility, Poaching and Cattle Rustling in the African Great Lakes RegionMission of Rwanda and Mission of Netherlands in cooperation with RECSA, African Development Bank and Bonn International Center for Conversion

12:00-2:00 pmPermanent Mission of Netherlands (666 Third Ave, 19 Fl.)