Lome declaration on disarmament and development adopted.

Lome Declaration on Disarmament and Development adopted

The Ministerial Regional Conference on Security, Disarmament and Development in Africa, convened by the Organization of African Unity (OAU) at Lome, Togo, from 13 to 16 August, adopted a Declaration and Programme of ACtion (A/40/761-S/17573) that said regional security must go beyond the prevention of armed conflicts to encompass a sustained commitment by States to national, regional and multilateral programmes of socio-economic development, justice, equity and human dignity.

The Conference considered that improved international relations, especially between the two super-Powers, and between North and South, would enhance the prospects for security, disarmament and development in Africa. There was deep concern over the "active collaboration" between South Africa, Israel and "some Western Powers" in the establishment and continued development of South Africa's nuclear weapon capability. The Conference underscored the need for concrete and practical peace measures, and recommended considering a legal instrument to make Africa a nuclear-free zone.

The Conference expressed its conviction that the elimination of apartheid and immediate independence for Namibia would greatly reduce the climate of tension and conflict in the region and enhance the prospects for disarmament, development, security and peaceful co-operation.

The Programme of Action called for continuous negotiations within the framework of the OAU aimed at reaching politically binding commitments in the context of a Conference on Security and Co-operation in Africa. The OAU Secretary-General was asked to elaborate proposals as a basis for discussion among States on defence co-operation and arrangements to prevent arms transfers to mercenaries in the region.

The Secretary-General of the United Nations was asked to create as soon as possible a regional centre in Africa for peace and disarmament, headquartered in Togo, to co-ordinate research, study, documentation and information activities in the fields of peace, security, disarmament and development.

Expert meeting: A meeting of more than 70 experts on security, disarmament and development in Africa was held in Lome from 11 to 12 August, just before the Ministerial Conference. Sponsored by the United Nations Department for Disarmament Affairs and the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), in co-operation with the OAU, it was the tenth event organized by the Department to promote the objectives of the world Disarmament Campaign.

Speeches during the meeting focused on such topics as the objectives and purposes of the World Disarmament Campaign; the role of research and educational institutions in promoting the objectives of disarmament; military expenditures by developing countries; and the relationship between disarmament and development.

"It is common knowledge that security and peace in a country promote development and that progress made in one of ... [those] areas has positive effects on the other", stated OAU Secretary-General Peter Onu in a message delivered on his behalf. "A glance at the budgets of the African countries shows that most of its States devote one third if not half of their national budgets to purchasing arms, while the majority of their people are wallowing in misery and ignorance".