The IAEA General Conference unanimously adopted a resolution today to name a new facility built under the Renovation of the Nuclear Applications Laboratories (ReNuAL) project “The Yukiya Amano Laboratories”, after late IAEA Director General Amano, who had led the IAEA between December 2009 and July this year.
The resolution — submitted by Germany, Japan and South Africa — recognized “the significant contribution [Mr Amano] made to enhancing the Agency’s efforts toward international peace and security and in support of the peaceful use of nuclear technologies, particularly through the motto ‘Atoms for Peace and Development’.”
“The General Conference […] expresses its sincere gratitude and appreciation to Mr. Amano for his devotion to the objectives and functions of the Agency during his distinguished and successful tenure as Director General,” the resolution stated.
In a statement to the General Conference, the Government of Japan paid tribute to Mr Amano: “Through these initiatives, Japan sincerely hopes that Mr. Amano’s vision and accomplishments will be passed down for generations.”
Describing the ReNuAL project as a symbol of "Atoms for Peace and Development", the Government of Japan announced a contribution of €1 million for the renovation of the laboratories and called on other countries in the position to do so to contribute further funding.
During a side event on the status of the renovation of the laboratories also taking place today, representatives of Member States saw the images of the building and the new name. The Ambassadors of Germany and South Africa, which are co-chairs of Friends of ReNuAL, an informal group of Member States that has been working to raise awareness of the renovation and promote fundraising, spoke at the event.
“This project would not have been such a great success without the vision of the late Director General Yukiya Amano,” said German Ambassador Gerhard Kuntzle. “We pay tribute to an exceptional leader, an inspiring leader, who widened the scope of activities of the Agency to Atoms for Peace and Development. His tireless promotion of the renovation of the laboratories in Seibersdorf was a personal affair of the heart for him.”
The new Flexible Modular Laboratory building that will now be named after Mr. Amano was inaugurated in November 2018. Once operational, the new facility will house the Animal Production and Health Laboratory, the Food and Environmental Protection Laboratory and the Soil and Water Management and Crop Nutrition Laboratory. The activities of these laboratories in the new building will enhance the capacity of the IAEA to help countries in the use of nuclear techniques in agriculture, food security and natural resource management.
Nuclear techniques can help increase livestock productivity, detect food fraud, combat animal diseases and improve soil and water management, among others. Located in Seibersdorf, outside Vienna, the three laboratories support national experts worldwide in building research and development capacity in these areas.
Through these initiatives, Japan sincerely hopes that Mr. Amano’s vision and accomplishments will be passed down for generations.
