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Marking and Tracing of Small Arms

With the support of the German Foreign Ministry experts of BICC (Bonn International Center for Conversion) have published a training-manual on the marking and tracing of small arms. This training module is intended for national, regional and international government officials, legislators, administrators and other stakeholders involved in SALW (Small Arms and Light Weapons) control, introducing them to the contents, implications and issues surrounding implementation of the UN Instrument on Marking and Tracing (UN M&TI). The BICC TRESA (Training and Education on Small Arms, 2003–2006) project has developed modules and training materials dealing with different aspects of SALW control, and this new module is the most recent of the series.

The United Nations General Assembly on 8 December 2005 adopted the “International Instrument to Enable States to identify and Trace, in a Timely and Reliable Manner, Illicit Small Arms and Light Weapons” (UN M&TI). “The question is: how could this instrument work in practice? and: how is it to be brought to the level of actors—nationally, regionally and internationally?” Michael Ashkenazi, BICC expert on small arms and project leader, asks.

The overall goal of this module is therefore to familiarize trainees—who could be government administrators, legislators, journalists, and others—with the UN M&TI, to:

  • Enhance their understanding of the UN M&TI.
  • Facilitate the implementation of the UN M&TI at the national and regional levels.
  • Facilitate an understanding of the interface between technical capacities and requirements on the one hand, and legal and financial implications on the other.

“We expect the module to provide a framework for training, for example, government SALW Focal Point officials in many African and Asian states, in implementing the Instrument in their countries and regions,” says Dr. Ashkenazi.

“Where there are efforts on a regional level—at best linked to a regional organizational framework—it seems easier to attain progress in small arms control,” Peter Croll, Director of BICC, adds, referring to the Nairobi Protocol and the ECOWAS Convention (both 2006).

Germany has actively participated in the negotiations on the International Tracing Instrument. “The German government’s support for BICC’s work on marking and tracing follows up on this commitment,” Ambassador Rüdiger Lüdeking, Deputy Commissioner of the German Federal Government for Arms Control and Disarmament, explains.

From 14 to18 July 2008, the Biennial Meeting of States (BMS) will take place at the United Nations in New York. The BMS will discuss advances in implementing the UN Programme of Action (POA) on controlling illicit SALW. This year, proceedings at the BMS will also include reporting on developments relating to Marking and Tracing of SALW. “With the help of the German Federal Foreign Ministry we hope to contribute to this discussion and to present first results of working with the training module on M&TI,” Elvan Isikozlu, one of the module’s authors, explains.

The training module on M&TI, which is planned to be translated into French and Arabic, is now available at
http://www.tresa-online.org/modules/module.php?id=15%20


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