Representatives from 26 countries in Africa meet next week in Algiers, Algeria, to assess progress and reaffirm their commitments to regional nuclear cooperation. The countries are members of an agreement called AFRA, which stands for the African Co-operative Agreement for Research, Development and Training related to Nuclear Science and Technology.
AFRA Member States are Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Libya, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
AFRA was established in 1990 under the aegis of the IAEA, with the mission to "develop capacity and facilitate, through regional co-operation, the use of infrastructure to exploit relevant nuclear technology safely in order to meet the challenges of sustained communal socio-economic development on the African Continent". Efforts are directed at optimizing the collective utilization of available infrastructure and expertise in the region for socio-economic development, enhance national and regional sustainability, and pave the way to regional self-reliance.
Three vital principles guide AFRA's operations:
- Long-term capacity building
- Shorter-term focus on "problem solving"
- "Least intervention"by exploiting regional expertise preferentially.
More than 25 cooperative projects are being implemented under the AFRA framework. These projects cover a range of fields including, nuclear safety, human health, agriculture, non-destructive testing, irradiation technology, reactor utilization for socio-economic development.
The opening of the 13th Technical Working Group Meeting is scheduled for Saturday, 20 April, at the Nation Palace, Club des Pins, Algiers. Prof N. Bendjaballah, Chairman of the Algerian Atomic Energy Commission, will address the African diplomatic corps accredited in Algiers and delegates from international institutions attending the meeting. Dr. B.Y.Kim, Director of the Africa, East Asia and the Pacific Division, Technical Cooperative Department, will also address the meeting on behalf of the IAEA. Observers from numerous international institutions are expected to be present.
In parallel to this meeting, Algeria is organizing a scientific seminar to highlight the recent technological advances at national and regional levels in the fields of radiation safety, health, agriculture, industry, water resources and nuclear applications developed around nuclear research reactors. This seminar will be held from 22- 24 April 2002 at the Auditorium of the Sheraton Club des Pins Hotel, Algiers. AFRA project scientific consultants (PSCs) have been invited to deliver presentations focusing on the"state-of-the-art"in their respective fields of expertise.
An exhibition will be organized from 20-25 April on the same themes and highlighting past achievements. Stands are dedicated to IAEA and AFRA programmes and Web sites, and to AFRA Member States material or documentation.
For further information, please contact:
Mr. M. Baaliouamer, AFRA National Co-ordinator,
Director, Algerian Atomic Energy Commission
Fax: 213 21 43 35 39
E mail : M. Baaliouamer@comena-dz.org
Mr. M. Remki, Director of Co-operation,
Atomic Energy Commission, Algeria
Fax: 213 21 43 35 39
E-mail : Remki@comena-dz.org
Mr. M. Maksoudi, AFRA Coordinator,
IAEA Africa Section, Dept. of Technical Co-operation
Fax: +43 1 2600 29 703
E-mail : M.Maksoudi@iaea.org