Southern African Development Community (SADC) efforts to manage and control ammunition in its area of responsibility took another step forward with an informal regional meeting – in Gaborone – on implementing the global framework for through-life conventional ammunition management.
The 24-25 September meeting was not confined to Southern Africa and included the east of the continent, a SADC statement has it.
The meeting, a collaborative one involving the regional bloc, UNODA (United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs) and its Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa (UNREC), aimed to raise awareness of the new arms control instrument. Financial support for the meeting came from Germany.
The Global Framework came into being last year and contains a number of commitments on ammunition. These, according to UNODA, include preventing diversion, illicit trafficking and misuse of ammunition; mitigating and preventing unplanned explosions at munition sites; ensuring safety and security of conventional ammunition throughout its lifecycle from the point of manufacture; as well as contributing to lasting peace, security and sustainable development. The Global Framework, officially the Global Framework for Through-life Conventional Ammunition Management, has 15 objectives and “85 concrete measures promoting through-life ammunition management in terms of safety, security and sustainability.”
UN Resident Co-ordinator in Botswana, Zia Choudhury, told the two-day meeting effective ammunition management was crucial in promoting peace and sustainable development. He said proper management can help reduce the demand for illicit ammunition by addressing inequalities and the root causes of conflict, warning diversion and trafficking of ammunition fuels armed violence, crime and terrorism, with non-State actors often using its explosive potential for improvised explosive devices. Additionally, unplanned explosions at munitions sites over the years have caused thousands of deaths, environmental destruction and “significant damage to infrastructure”.
Looking back, UNODA Officer-in-Charge, Conventional Arms Branch, Manuel Martinez Miralles, said conventional ammunition was largely neglected globally before the Global Framework’s introduction in 2023.
“For over three decades, since the topic was first introduced at the UN in relation to small arms, no comprehensive global action had been taken. The successful adoption of the Global Framework by the UN General Assembly (GA) marks a significant milestone, bringing this longstanding process to a close”.
It, according to him, “is a notable achievement for multilateral disarmament and arms control, highlighting that despite challenging international political conditions, progress is achievable through compromise, goodwill, and collaboration”.
Gabriela Bennemann, German Ambassador Designate to Botswana and SADC, highlighted alarming challenges posed by the illegal proliferation of small arms, light weapons (SALW) and conventional ammunition, referred to a report by UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres. It shows a 53% rise in civilian deaths across twelve of the world’s deadliest conflicts, with SALW the primary cause of conflict-related civilian fatalities.
She told the Gaborone meeting that strengthening small arms control worldwide is a key pillar of Germany’s policy on conventional disarmament and arms control. In 2023, Germany contributed over 20 million euros to global projects addressing this issue. Acknowledging that SALW threatens human security globally, she emphasised a need for action beyond Europe, with Germany supporting efforts in various regions.
SADC efforts and initiatives were put to the meeting by Thanyani Gumede, Senior Officer Police at the SADC Secretariat. Speaking on behalf of the SADC Director of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Affairs Professor Kula Theletsane, she said these included implementing the African Union (AU) master roadmap on practical steps to Silence the Guns in Africa, a continental bloc flagship project under its AU Agenda 2063. It included observing Africa Amnesty Month with member states involved through the regional SALW co-ordinating committee. SADC is developing a comprehensive project to combat proliferation of illicit SALW and ammunition, according to Gumede.
