OSCE, British Embassy enhance security of small arms and light weapons and stockpiles of conventional ammunition in Kyrgyzstan

BISHKEK, 6 February 2015 –The OSCE Centre in Bishkek and the Embassy of the United Kingdom today handed over 60 desktop computers to the Kyrgyz Defence Ministry for establishing a data base on small arms and light weapons (SALW) and stockpiles of conventional ammunition (CA) across the country.

“The Kyrgyz Government has made effective security and control of small arms and stockpiles of conventional ammunition a national priority,” said the Head of the OSCE Centre in Bishkek, Ambassador Sergey Kapinos. “The OSCE Centre in Bishkek is pleased to provide the maximum possible support to its efforts.”

In this regard the OSCE Centre in Bishkek has signed five agreements with the Kyrgyz Defence Ministry as a part of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic and the OSCE on Small Arms and Light Weapons and a Stockpile of Conventional Ammunition Programme in the Kyrgyz Republic.

The agreements aim to enhance the capacity of Kyrgyzstan for effective SALW and CA management and control in a number of priority areas, including automated management, record-keeping and tracking. The software for the electronic database was developed and is being tested by the Armed Forces of Belarus. An outdated SALW and CA record-keeping and tracking system was ineffective in determining surplus that requires disposal.

The assistance programme also envisages a series of two-week training courses on the use of the software for specialists in rocket-artillery armament from the Kyrgyz Armed Forces.  Initial training courses were conducted in January and February 2015 and a second round is planned from 24 February to 6 March 2015.

The programme was developed by the OSCE Centre in Bishkek on the initiative of the Government of Kyrgyzstan and is jointly financed by the European Union, Finland, Kazakhstan, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Belarus.