Regional training on protection of nuclear materials opens

Accra, Aug. 10, GNA - The International Atomic Energy Agency

(IAEA), in collaboration with the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission

(GAEC), on Monday began a five-day regional training workshop on the

foundations of physical protection of nuclear material and facilities.

The training is intended to improve the knowledge base of participants

as far as physical protection of nuclear material and facilities are

concerned and effectively train them in the customization of the

state-of-the-art technology.
Lt. Col. Larry Gbevlo-Lartey (Rtd), National Security Coordinator, in

a speech read for him, underscored the importance of nuclear education

saying in order to prevent the ultimate catastrophe, states and international

organizations needed to work together to make nuclear and radioactive

materials more secure and to detect and respond in a timely and

professional manner to acts involving sabotage and theft of nuclear

materials.
He commended the IAEA for its support to African member states,

particularly Ghana, through the GAEC, in the area of technical assistance

programmes.
Lt. Col Gbevlo-Lartey said the training would also help combat

malicious acts involving nuclear and radioactive materials.

He said as a pre-requisite to the effective and safe utilization of the

development of nuclear techniques and practices, both member and

non-member states were required to establish the necessary protection

and safe infrastructure to regulate activities that could involve radiation

exposure and interventions.
He expressed the hope that the training would enlighten participants on

the dynamic trends of physical protection systems to the merit of

socio-economic development of member states, particularly for Ghana

and the continent as a whole, as far as the development and application of

nuclear energy was concerned.
Prof. Yaw Serfor Armah, Deputy Director-General, GAEC, said the

Commission was privileged to host the training course and urged

participants to pick up the technical skills for reinforcement and review of

the design and evaluation processes of the physical protection system in

their countries and hence Africa.
He explained that the course was designed to provide the basic

understanding of physical protection as well as to demonstrate a

systematic methodology to design and evaluate physical protection

systems for nuclear facilities.
It would also assist relevant authorities in developing and implementing

the physical protection principles and equipments with reference to

system engineering, facility analysis and coordination between the

authorities in charge of nuclear security facilities.

GNA