Key Activities
Acknowledging the seriousness of the post-conflict militarization facing governments of South Eastern Europe, SEESAC has assisted local stakeholders in creating a multi-pronged, holistic approach to address this problem. SEESAC supports: public campaigns that aim to raise awareness about the dangers of SALW among the local population, collection and destruction of illegal and unwanted SALW, efficient registration and tracking of SALW currently in use, as well as better management and storage of the existing stockpiles. These SEESAC activities are currently generously supported by the European Union, as an integral part of the EU Strategy to combat the illicit accumulation and trafficking of SALW and their ammunition. (See: EU Council Decision 2010/179/CFSP, 11 March 2010)
Destruction
SEESAC provides independent, impartial and neutral technical advice and assistance for the development and implementation of safe, efficient and effective SALW destruction initiatives. Since 2002, as a result of SEESAC’s endeavors in this field approximately 250,000 pieces of weapons have been destroyed in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Montenegro, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and Serbia. Find out more about the SEESAC’s Destruction activities here.
Collection and Awareness Raising
Working hand-in-hand with local partners, SEESAC informs the public on ways to legalize and surrender illegal weapons while also educating citizens about the dangers of SALW. In Croatia, in close collaboration with the Croatian Ministry of Interior and UNDP Croatia, SEESAC led a project that resulted in the collection of 14,621 weapons, 564,434 bullets and 190 kg explosives during May 2010 – August 2011. The collected material was then marked for subsequent destruction. Find out more about SEESAC’ Collection and Awareness Raising Activities here.
Storage Upgrades
Structural upgrade of storage facilities is one of SEESAC’s growing activity areas. SEESAC is currently involved in three projects of storage upgrade with Governments in Montenegro, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. In May of 2011, Montenegro’s storage “Taraš” became the first such site to benefit from security reconstruction provided by SEESAC. Find out more about SEESAC’s SALW Storage Upgrade Activities here.
Storage Management Training
Safe-keeping of stockpiles requires knowledge and implementation of best practices and stockpile management techniques. To help local institutions make progress in this direction, SEESAC has initiated development of training curricula on: planning and managing of stockpile locations, inventory management and accounting control measures, and transport security. The fifteen-day training has been attended by dozens of officers responsible for stockpile management in the Ministries of Defence and Interior of Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Serbia. Find out more about SEESAC’s SALW Storage Management Training here.
Marking, Tracing and Registration
SEESAC helps local institutions keep detailed record of the legal weapons which are in use by both civilians and government agents. To this end, in 2011 alone SEESAC has assisted governments of Montenegro and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia establish or enhance existing systems for registering weapons, issuing permits, and recordkeeping by providing them with adequate software, technical equipment and infrastructure. Find out more about SEESAC’s SALW Marking, Tracing and Registration activities here.
Arms Export Controls
Promoting outmost transparency and exchange of best practices and experiences by and among institutions responsible for various aspects of arms control, on a regional level, is yet another way in which SEESAC aims to create a poor environment for weapons proliferation in South Easter Europe. SEESAC supports:
- Publication of over 30 comprehensive national and 3 regional reports providing information on relevant legislation and actual arms exports and imports data; SEESAC’s Regional Reports on Arms Exports are unique regional efforts, which can be compared only to a similar EU publication.
- Organization of regular regional information exchange meetings on arms export control practices;
- Organization of Parliamentary Forums on Arms Control – meetings of regional legislators responsible for arms control oversight.
These SEESAC activities are generously supported by the government of Norway. Find out more about the SEESAC’s Arms Export Control activities here.
SEESAC’s activities are continuously changing to adapt to the current needs of the countries, and capacities of the local governments and other stakeholders. To learn more about the profile of our previous activity areas, please visit the “Completed Activities” section of the site.
