Topical day on creating synergies on regional assistance capabilities for nuclear/radiological emergency response

• Motivation & Scope
• Programme
• Contact
• Venue

Motivation & Scope

In June 2004 the IAEA Board of governors approved the 2004 - 2009 action plan for 'Strengthening the International Preparedness and Response System for Nuclear and Radiological Emergencies'. The strategy of this action plan addresses the issue that, "nuclear and radiological incidents, accidents and emergencies can become a serious threat to health, environment, economy and other societal interests. It is the responsibility of the member states to plan, prepare, and implement appropriate response actions in order to protect people and the environment.

The nuclear and radiological emergencies (including those resulting from the malicious use of radioactive or nuclear material and including situations for which prompt action is warranted to mitigate the effects of a perceived hazard) may exceed the capabilities and resources of many countries. Moreover an incident can become an international event with consequences over wide geographical areas and several countries, and could certainly lead to public concern in many countries. It is therefore important to have a system of co-operation between States so that they can together better respond to these types of events".

During the Rio Conference in November 2005 a session was dedicated to exchange ideas on one of the key aspects of the approach to providing assistance, which is through the creation of 'National Assistance Capabilities'. In this context, this workshop is intended to address this issue through exploring the possibility of creating/enhancing/organizing national assistance capabilities, that would enable neighbouring states (in a regional context) to respond – in an effective and efficient way - to a nuclear incident or radiological emergency through sharing resources, know-how, means - methods and experts.