ST JOHN’S, Antigua (CMC) – Antigua and Barbuda is hosting a week-long regional conference aimed at strengthening nuclear material  inventory reporting under the modified Small Quantities Protocol.

The protocol  is an agreement that simplifies the implementation of safeguards for states with little or no nuclear material. It is a protocol to a comprehensive safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that suspends most reporting and inspection requirements while the state remains below specific nuclear material thresholds.

A revised version of the SQP, developed in 2005, strengthens the system by making key reporting and inspection provisions operative.

The conference has brought together delegates from St Kitts and Nevis, St Vincent and the Grenadines, St Lucia, Suriname, the Bahamas, Grenada, Belize and the host country.

It is organised in partnership with the US Department of Energy, the National Nuclear Security Administration, the International Nuclear Safeguards Engagement Programme and the IAEA.

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Dr Clarence Pilgrim, said the conference is “timely and essential,” adding noting that even states with little or no nuclear material must meet international non-proliferation obligations.

He said the sessions will help countries develop  the technical skills needed to produce accurate nuclear inventories and submit reports to the IAEA.

The organisers said the training will support the region’s efforts to meet the requirements of the Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement and Additional Protocol, which underpin global nuclear security.