URANIUM RESOURCES IN AFRICA: EXPLORATION, EXPLOITATION AND COOPERATION OPPORTUNITIES
11 September 2020
TSHWANE-VIENNA-NUR-SULTAN
On 10 September 2020, the Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan in South Africa took part in a webinar, organized jointly by the International Science and Technology Center (ISTC) and the African Nuclear Energy Commission (AFCONE), with the assistance of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Dr. Messaoud BAALIOUAMER, AFCONE Executive Secretary and Dr. Kamen Velichkov, Senior Program Manager and Diplomatic Advisor at ISTC were co-moderators of the online meeting.
The event was held on the theme, URANIUM RESOURCES IN AFRICA: EXPLORATION, EXPLOITATION AND COOPERATION OPPORTUNITIES.
The event was attended by representatives of some international organizations, such as, the African Union (Department of Trade and Industry and AFCONE), the IAEA (Department of Technical Cooperation with Africa), ISTC and several leading global and regional experts, working in the field of nuclear energy. Inter alia, Dr Gabrielle Schneider, Executive Director of the Namibian Uranium Institute, Dr Timur Zhantikin, Director-General of the Kazakhstan Nuclear Power Plant LLP, Prof Dr Shaukat Abdulrazak, Director, Technical Cooperation Africa, IAEA, and others.
In the framework of his participation to this event, Ambassador Kanat Tumysh of Kazakhstan to South Africa, addressed the webinar and informed the participants on the policy, pursued by Kazakhstan in the field of nuclear energy. He emphasized the historical significance of the implementation of the initiative of H.E. Mr. Nursultan Nazarbayev, the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan – the Leader of the Nation (Elbasy) on strengthening and institutionalizing international cooperation among existing nuclear-weapon-free zones, in particular through the institutionalization of partnership between the Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone in Central Asia (CANWFZ) and African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone (AFNWFZ).
In this context, the Kazakh diplomat informed on the joint work promoted by Kazakhstan (on behalf of the Central Asian parties) and African partners to conclude a Memorandum of Cooperation between the two nuclear-weapon-free zones in the near future.
Yet, it is a practical continuation of the decisions taken at the “International Seminar of Representatives of Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zones”, held on 28 August 2019 in Nur-Sultan.
In addition, the Kazakh diplomat praised the recently adopted Joint Communiqué between the CTBTO and AFCONE, dedicated to the International Day against Nuclear Tests.
As the practical follow-up to the meeting, the participants adopted a number of recommendations and proposals on the need to arrange further similar online meetings for a more detailed discussion on the prospects for developing cooperation in the field of nuclear energy to maintain its safe and peaceful use, as well as to ensure global non-proliferation of WMD.