The 33rd AFRA TWGM from 18 to 22 July 2022 in Kigali, Rwanda

The AFRA TWGM meeting was held in Kigali, Rwanda from 18 – 22 July 2022 and was hosted by Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority (RURA). The meeting was attended by 39 participants including 33 AFRA National Coordinators (NCs), AFRA Chair, the 3 Chairs of the AFRA Committees, AUC representative, 4 officials from the IAEA and officials from Rwanda supporting the event. The meeting provided a platform for discussions, sharing experiences and best practices to improve the implementation of the AFRA Programme.

HE Dr. Ernest Nsabimana, Minister of Infrastructure, Rwanda, welcomed all meeting participants to Rwanda and expressed his gratitude to attend the opening session of the AFRA TWGM in conjunction with the High-Level seminar on building a comprehensive national radiation safety infrastructure in compliance with the IAEA Safety Standards. He reiterated the need for complementarity between national and regional projects to ensure the maximum utilization of the available resources.

Hua Liu, IAEA Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Technical Cooperation, in his remarks commended the progress made by AFRA in building capacities in the peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology in Africa and emphasized on the need to strengthen the Regional Designated Centres (RDCs) to provide quality training and services in the region. He also reiterated the importance of strengthening the regulatory infrastructure in MSs to ensure the safe and secure use of radiation sources and the safety of patients, workers and the environment.

Shaukat Abdulrazak, Director of the Division for Africa, in his remarks emphasized the need for ownership and shared responsibility to enhance implementation of the AFRA programme and promote the peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology in Africa for economic development. He informed AFRA NCs to strengthen the south-to-south cooperation for development in the region emphasizing on acceding Government Parties to the revised AFRA Agreement. He also reiterated the importance of the High-Level Policy Meeting (HLPM) and encouraged the AFRA NCs to ensure that senior government official at the level of Ministers will attend the meeting.

The participants closely reviewed the implementation of the 2020–2021 programme and discussed how to strengthen the implementation of the 2022-2023 programme, in addition to their accession to the Revised AFRA Agreement, annual reporting, promotion and Expansion of RDCs, AFRA fund contributions, Human Resource Development strategy and plan, and preparations for the High-Level Policy Meeting (HLPM) and coming TWGM meeting.

On the margins of the meeting, an AFRA-China side event was organized by China National Nuclear Commission on Nuclear Technology and Knowledge Transfer. The meeting was chaired by Director Shaukat Abdulrazak, and it consisted of speeches from AFRA Representative, representatives of China, AFRA NCs and the DDG-TC and a series of presentations from different presenters representing different China technologies including Nuclear Power Plants, Small Modular Reactors, Research Reactors, Gamma Radiation Facility, Cyclotron, nuclear medicine, Uranium Survey & Exploration, Human resource development and Resource mobilization. A follow up meeting will be planned in China.

Felix Omonya, PMO, TCAF