Council Joint Action 2006/243/CFSP of  20 March 2006  on support for activities of the Preparatory Commission of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organisation (CTBTO) in the area of training and capacity building for verification and in the framework of the implementation of the EU Strategy against Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction
Date: 2006-03-20
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: EU financing, EU policy, international agreement, international organisation, non-proliferation of arms, nuclear safety, nuclear test, vocational training, weapon of mass destruction

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Official Journal of the European Union

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COUNCIL JOINT ACTION 2006/243/CFSP

of 20 March 2006

on support for activities of the Preparatory Commission of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban
Treaty Organisation (CTBTO) in the area of training and capacity building for verification and in the
framework of the implementation of the EU Strategy against Proliferation of Weapons of Mass
Destruction

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

(6)

Having regard to the Treaty on European Union, and in
particular Article 14 thereof,

Whereas:

The Preparatory Commission of the CTBTO pursues the
same objectives appearing in recitals 4 and 5 and is
already engaged in identifying by what means its verifi-
cation system could best be strengthened through the
timely provision of expertise and training to personnel
from Signatory States involved in the implementation of
is therefore appropriate to
the verification regime.
entrust
the CTBTO
with the technical implementation of this Joint Action,

It
the Preparatory Commission of

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

On 12 December 2003, the European Council adopted
the EU Strategy against Proliferation of Weapons of Mass
Destruction, Chapter
III of which contains a list of
measures to combat such proliferation which need to
be taken both within the EU and in third countries.

The European Union is actively implementing the EU
Strategy and is giving effect to the measures listed in
through releasing
Chapter
financial
projects
specific
conducted by multilateral institutions.

in particular
support
to

thereof,
resources

III

(CTBT),

The States Signatories to the Comprehensive Nuclear-
Test-Ban Treaty
the General
adopted by
the United Nations on 10 September
Assembly of
Preparatory
decided
1996,
establish
have
Commission,
the
for
endowed with legal
purpose of carrying out the effective implementation of
the CTBT, pending the establishment of the CTBT Orga-
nisation (CTBTO).

a
capacity,

to

HAS ADOPTED THIS JOINT ACTION:

Article 1

For the purposes of immediate and practical

implemen-
1.
tation of some elements of the EU Strategy against the Prolif-
eration of Weapons of Mass Destruction, the European Union
shall support the activities of the Preparatory Commission of
the CTBTO in the area of training and capacity building for
verification in order to further the following objectives:

— enhancing the operational performance of the verification
system of the Preparatory Commission of the CTBTO,

— improving the capacity of CTBT Signatory States to fulfil
their verification responsibilities under the CTBT and to
enable them to benefit
fully from participation in the
treaty regime and from potential civil and scientific appli-
cations.

On 17 November 2003, the Council adopted Common
Position 2003/805/CFSP on the universalisation and rein-
forcement of multilateral agreements in the field of non-
proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and means
of delivery (1).

2.
The project of the Preparatory Commission of the CTBTO,
corresponding to measures of the EU Strategy, shall have the
following objectives:

The early entry into force and universalisation of the
CTBT and the strengthening of the monitoring and veri-
fication system of the Preparatory Commission of the
CTBTO are important objectives of
the EU Strategy
against the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction.

(1) OJ L 302, 20.11.2003, p. 34.

— to provide training for the purpose of building capacity with
the Preparatory

regard to the verification system of
Commission of the CTBTO,

— to provide electronic, interactive access to training courses
and technical workshops as well as continuous access to
training modules.

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The project shall be carried out for the benefit of all CTBT
Signatory States.

A detailed description of the project is set out in the Annex.

Article 2

The Presidency, assisted by the Secretary-General of the
1.
Council/High Representative for the CFSP (SG/HR), shall be
responsible for the implementation of
in
full association with the Commission of the European Commu-
nities.

this Joint Action,

The Commission shall supervise the proper implemen-

2.
tation of the financial contribution referred to in Article 3.

3.
The technical implementation of the project referred to in
Article 1(2) shall be entrusted to the Preparatory Commission of
the CTBTO, which shall perform this task under the responsi-
bility of the Presidency and under the control of the SG/HR. For
this purpose,
into the necessary
arrangements with the Preparatory Commission of the CTBTO.

the SG/HR shall

enter

Article 3

1.
The financial reference amount for the implementation of
the project referred to in Article 1(2) shall be EUR 1 133 000.

The management of

2.
the expenditure financed by the
general budget of the European Union specified in paragraph
1 shall be subject
the
Community applying to budget matters with the proviso that
the
any pre-financing shall not
Community.

to the procedures and rules of

remain the property of

For the purpose of implementing the expenditure referred
3.
to in paragraph 1, the Commission shall conclude a specific
financing agreement with the Preparatory Commission of the
CTBTO in accordance with the Regulations and Rules of the
CTBTO. It shall stipulate that the Preparatory Commission of
the CTBTO shall ensure visibility of the EU contribution, appro-
priate to its size.

Article 4

of

regular

The Presidency, assisted by the SG/HR, shall report
to the
Council on the implementation of this Joint Action on the
basis
Preparatory
Commission of the CTBTO. The Commission shall be fully
associated and shall provide information on the financial
aspects of the implementation of the project referred to in
Article 1(2).

prepared

reports

the

by

Article 5

This Joint Action shall enter into force on the day of
adoption.

its

It shall expire 15 months after its adoption.

Article 6

This Joint Action shall be published in the Official Journal of the
European Union.

Done at Brussels, 20 March 2006.

For the Council
The President

U. PLASSNIK

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ANNEX

EU support for activities of the Preparatory Commission of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organisation
(CTBTO) in the area of training and capacity building for verification and in the framework of the implementation of the
EU Strategy against Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction

1. Description

The CTBTO Preparatory Commission is establishing a global verification regime consisting of 321 monitoring stations,
16 reference laboratories, the International Data Centre (IDC) and an on-site inspection (OSI) capability. An essential
characteristic of the regime is its decentralized nature whereby data collected by the stations are distributed to
Signatory States together with products from the IDC for final analysis and On-Site Inspection teams will be
composed from an international roster. The regime therefore relies on the availability of experts in Signatory States
to operate the stations and make use of the International Monitoring System (IMS) data and IDC products through
their National Data Centres (NDCs), as well as on the availability of capabilities for OSI teams.

In order to improve the capacity of CTBT Signatory States to fulfil their verification responsibilities under the CTBT
and to enable them to fully benefit from participation in the treaty regime, the Preparatory Commission of the CTBTO
has since its creation emphasised the importance of training and capacity building. In addition to traditional training
methods, new information and communication technologies offer a range of possibilities for deepening and
broadening capacity building in the future.

The e-training project is global in nature. It will reach all CTBT Signatory States and will provide electronic, interactive
access to training courses and technical workshops to authorised users as well as continuous access to training
modules through the Expert Communication System of the CTBTO Preparatory Commission.

2. Project description

A pilot project was launched in November 2005 to explore the technological options available for web-casting and
web-conferencing as well as for computer-based training with selected CTBT Signatory States in all regions. On the
basis of the results of this pilot phase which will pay particular attention to the differing technological environments in
which e-training methods should be used, the methodology, technical infrastructure, and substance of the capacity-
building actions will be developed.

The project will cover the development and implementation of capacity building based on the following concept:

— computer-based training/self-study (CBT).

Computer-based training/self-study (CBT) allows for some interactivity and for continuous availability of training
modules for the authorised user. CBT requires a long development time as the story board must be developed,
reviewed, tested and revised many times before the first release to students. If the material being taught does not
change very much, this can be an effective method of delivering consistent training material to a wide audience. For
example, staff of NDCs need basic familiarisation with the concepts and tools used in the Provisional Technical
Secretariat. Participants in OSI activities (Integrated Field Experiment 2008) will need to be trained in large numbers.

After the pilot phase, which is financed through bilateral voluntary contributions, the project will be implemented in
two phases as follows:

— Phase 1: Development of a prototype eLearning system and initiation of courseware

The results of the pilot phase should allow the identification of a concept that meets the differing demands of the
potential recipients in both technical and substantive terms.

Prototype modules for computer-based training will be developed and tested.

Components that should be considered for distance learning include:

— online training modules for system elements,

— training packages and lectures presenting static information or mature processes,

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— provision of training material, including technical and political documentation available on a web site,

— test systems where station operators can run dummy sessions related to routine operations and maintenance

procedures,

— hands-on training in Geotool based on the tutorial. This could be part of preparatory training for a more

specialised training course,

— modules of the training cycle for the participants in the OSI Integrated Field Exercise.

— Phase 2: Full implementation of the courseware

In the second phase, all remaining modules for the computer-based training will be developed and implemented. The
content development of certain modules will be outsourced to partner institutions in CTBT Signatory States, which
were instrumental in the development of techniques and procedures used in the CTBTO Preparatory Commission. The
modules developed in phase 2 would benefit from the experience gained in the prototype development in phase 1.

Extensive evaluation accompanying the development and implementation phase is envisaged in order to fine tune the
methodology and technologies used to the various needs of the potential recipients. To this end, a specific evaluation
mechanism will be added to the CTBTO Preparatory Commission's ongoing evaluation of training and capacity-
building activities. A number of CTBT Signatory States from all regions will be invited to cooperate closely with
the CTBTO Preparatory Commission during the entire project and provide feedback on the usability of the capacity-
building products. The computer-based training element of the project, in particular, will have to go through several
testing and evaluation loops before a final product can be implemented.

Project Results

— Increased number of trained experts for testing, evaluating and provisionally operating the CTBT verification

regime,

— improved preparation of participants for technical workshops,

— increased number of participants and better dissemination and implementation of conclusions of

technical

workshops,

— improved accessibility of training modules independent of time zones and technological development of the

recipient state,

— provision of training and capacity building by electronic means to all CTBT Signatory States.

3. Duration

The total estimated duration of the two consecutive phases of the project will be 15 months.

4. Beneficiaries

The beneficiaries of e-training are all CTBT Signatory States. The capacity of these States to implement the CTBT and
its verification regime and to benefit fully from participation in the work of the CTBTO Preparatory Commission is
essential to the proper functioning of the CTBT. Due attention will be given to the linguistic diversity of beneficiaries,
including, where appropriate, language versions of training modules.

5. Implementing entity

The CTBTO Preparatory Commission will be entrusted with the implementation of the project. The project will be
implemented directly by staff of the Provisional Technical Secretariat of the CTBTO Preparatory Commission, CTBTO
Preparatory Commission Signatory States' experts or contractors. In the case of contractors, the procurement of any
goods, works or services by the CTBTO Preparatory Commission in the context of this Joint Action will be carried out
in accordance with the applicable rules and procedures of the CTBTO Preparatory Commission, as detailed in the EU
Contribution Agreement with the CTBTO Preparatory Commission.

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6. Third party participants

The project will be financed 100 % by this Joint Action. Experts from the CTBTO Preparatory Commission Signatory
States may be considered as third party participants. They will work under the standard rules of operation for CTBTO
Preparatory Commission experts.

7. Estimated required means

The EU contribution will cover full implementation of the two phases of the project described in this Annex. The
estimated costs are as follows:

— Phase 1 (terms of reference, prototype development, including testing of first modules):

— Phase 2 (development of remaining modules, testing and evaluation of modules with selected beneficiaries):

EUR 519 400

EUR 580 600

In addition, a contingency reserve of about 3 % of eligible costs (for a total amount of EUR 33 000) is included for
unforeseen costs.

8. Financial reference amount to cover the cost of the project

The total cost of the project is EUR 1 133 000.