The Fifth Regional Meeting of Commissions for Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) was held in Skopje on 3-4 November 2015, gathering representatives of SALW commissions from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Kosovo*, Montenegro, Moldova, Serbia, and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to exchange information and share knowledge in the area of SALW control.
 

“The effects of armed violence go well beyond the loss of life and physical injuries and pose a serious obstacle to the socio-economic development efforts. Therefore, the effective control of small arms and light weapons is not only a security issue, but one that influences the development planning and processes of the region”, Head of the Political Department of the Regional Cooperation Council Stefana Greavu said as she opened the meeting.   
 

Representatives of SALW Commissions from the region discussed updates to SALW Control strategies, concrete measures for armed violence prevention and reduction and how it relates to sustainable development, as well as how to tackle illicit possession of weapons. Delegates also addressed registration, record keeping and marking systems, as well as SALW collection and legalization campaigns.